Former India Test opener Aakash Chopra has stated that the main strength of the Sunrisers Hyderabad is in their bowling as the 2016 champions are preparing themselves to take on Chennai Super Kings in the first qualifier of the 2018 Indian Premier League.

Chopra also spoke of their flaws, expressing his concern over their middle-order mishaps due to the lack of confidence in Manish Pandey’s batting and Shakib Al Hasan’s rare appearances with the bat.

"[The worry for Sunrisers Hyderabad] is their lower-middle order. Manish Pandey may have scored runs but he hasn't exuded enough confidence, Shakib Al Hasan has not been able to bat much and resting Yusuf Pathan for Deepak Hooda hasn't really worked out that well. So that is a problem for them.”

However, he thinks that the spin-duo of Shakib Al Hasan and Rashid Khan are their biggest weapons against the opponents.

"Their strength is their spin department: Rashid Khan and Shakib Al Hasan. Both are doing exceedingly well."

Aakash Chopra spoke ahead of the all-important qualifier clash between Chennai Super Kings and Sunrisers Hyderabad. He also added that Chennai are the only team that Hyderabad haven’t been able to beat with Ambati Rayudu being among the runs in both the league encounters.

Can they get third time lucky in this game? Only time will tell.