Their bowling attacks struggling to find form, Kings XI Punjab and Sunrisers Hyderabad will look towards their power-hitters to do the job when the two erratic teams go head to head in an IPL match here on Thursday.

KXIP are currently languishing at the bottom of the table after losing four of their five games, while SRH are only slightly better at sixth following two wins and three losses so far.

KXIP’s strength has been their formidable opening duo. Skipper KL Rahul has been in scintillating form, scoring two fifties and a century, while Mayank Agarwal also has a half-century and a ton.

Nicholas Pooran has also looked sharp but Glenn Maxwell is yet to fire. But despite the batting performances, KXIP have been unable to win because of their disappointing bowling attack. Apart from Mohammed Shami, all the other bowlers have failed to take wickets, conceding far too many runs in the death overs.

They were unable to defend 223 against Rajasthan. In their 10-wicket loss in the previous outing, KXIP bowlers were at their wits’ end as Chennai Super Kings overhauled a 178-run target with 14 balls to spare. And come Thursday, Sunrisers, who are blessed with a strong top order comprising Jonny Bairstow, David Warner, Manish Pandey and Kane Williamson, will look to exploit a low-on-confidence KXIP bowling unit.

David Warner File picture

Warner and his men will also eye a revival, having been handed a 34-run defeat by the Mumbai Indians on Sunday. After losing their opening two games owing to the indifferent middle order, Sunrisers addressed the issue by bringing in Williamson. Skipper Warner backed youngsters Abhishek Sharma and Abdul Samad to fill in for the fifth bowler and the risk paid off as the former champions won two games on the trot.

However, the Orange Army was dealt a massive blow when senior pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar was ruled out of the tournament with a thigh muscle injury.

Going ahead, there will be added pressure on yorker specialist T. Natarajan and star spinner Rashid Khan. Sunrisers face the conundrum of either providing stability in the middle order or strengthening their bowling attack. They have the option of playing experienced Afghan all-rounder Mohammad Nabi or West Indies’ Fabian Allen but that would mean Williamson will have to sit out.