Kings XI Punjab and Hobart Hurricanes will play the opening match of Pool B in the CLT20 2014 at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium, Mohali, Chandigarh on Thursday.
For both sides, this will be their first appearance at the Champions League. Punjab qualifying as the Runner-Up to Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2014 Indian Premier League, while the Hurricanes were also Runner-Up in their domestic T20 tournament, the Big Bash in Australia, where they lost the final to Perth Scorchers.
With the top two sides to qualify from the two pools for the semi-finals, it is vital to get off to a good start, as it is expected that three wins will be required to secure a place in the knockout stages.
Any side losing their first contest, will effectively be put in a position where they will be playing knockout cricket from there on in. A further defeat being enough to effectively secure elimination.
If the Kings XI can produce anything like the form that they showed at the beginning of the 2014 IPL, then they will be serious contenders for the title. Much may depend on them getting the momentum at the beginning of the tournament, which they can carry through the six games if they go all the way to the final.
They will look to Australian Glenn Maxwell and South African David Miller to provide the fireworks at the beginning of the innings, with Australian George Bailey to follow up in the middle order.
There may, however, be a question mark about the backup bowling to the left arm express pace of Mitchell Johnson, should the dynamic batsmen not be able to post sufficiently large totals.
The Hurricanes, who will be lead by wicket-keeper batsman Tim Paine, will look to their team ethic which served them so well in the Big Bash, to see them through the challenges to come.