Where did SRH Go Wrong this IPL: Sunrisers Hyderabad have been completely eliminated from the race to the Playoffs of IPL 2023. The team faced a major setback due to the underperformance of their Indian batsmen, preventing their campaign from gaining momentum. Sunrisers Hyderabad didn’t receive the expected contributions from Mayank Agarwal (187 runs in 9 innings) and Abdul Samad (168 runs in 8 innings).
These Indian players were unable to deliver for their respective teams. Despite the consistent impact Rahul Tripathi has had in the cash-rich league over the years, he only managed 258 runs in 12 innings. Abhishek Sharma, the opener for SRH, showed promise at the beginning of the order but only scored 215 runs in 10 innings. While the overseas players from the eliminated teams didn’t perform exceptionally well either, the success of these teams heavily relied on their Indian core, particularly in conditions more suited to them. The teams that received valuable contributions from their Indian batting group are the ones still competing fiercely for a place in the Playoffs as the competition reaches its critical phase.
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No Right Combination
Confusion plagued Sunrisers Hyderabad this season. Despite having a star-studded support staff including Brian Lara and Dale Steyn, the team led by Aiden Markaram struggled to find the right combination and experimented with different players throughout the season. They attempted to accommodate Harry Brook, who seemed out of place in the middle order, at the top of the batting lineup. While Brook repaid the faith with a century off 55 balls, he managed just 63 runs in his other eight innings when batting in both the middle and top order. This reshuffling resulted in Abhishek Sharma, one of their most successful batters from the previous year, briefly being pushed down the order before returning as an opener.
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Unsettled Top Order Batting of SRH
Sunrisers Hyderabad then partnered Abhishek with his Punjab teammate Anmolpreet Singh at the top of the order, but this move didn’t yield immediate results, similar to Delhi Capitals’ experience. However, SRH’s bowling performances, combined with Heinrich Klaasen’s impressive displays lower down the order, kept them interested in the competition.
Following his team’s loss to the Gujarat Titans in Ahmedabad, SRH head coach Brian Lara praised their bowlers and credited them for keeping the team in contention throughout a disappointing season. “Our bowlers deserve credit for their tremendous performances this season. They have kept us in every game we have played. At one point, it seemed like the opposition would score over 200 runs, but our bowlers fought back and brought us back into the game,” Lara said during the post-match press conference. He also highlighted Heinrich Klaasen’s outstanding contributions and expressed his unwavering confidence whenever Klaasen was at the crease. Lara acknowledged that as a batting unit, they had fallen short of expectations and recognized that their performance wasn’t up to par.
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How Did SRH Perform in IPL Mini Auction?
Sunrisers Hyderabad made significant changes to their team during the mini-auction, spending a substantial amount to secure the services of Harry Brook (13.25 crores) and Mayank Agarwal (8.25 crores). However, the team continues to struggle and currently occupies the second-to-last position in the points table with only four wins from 12 games. Lara admitted that as a batting unit, SRH failed to meet the anticipated standards. He commented, “During the big auction, we aimed to rebuild our team after facing batting issues last year. We went into the mini-auction with a different approach and recruited players like Abhishek Sharma and Rahul Tripathi, who scored over 400 runs last year. Unfortunately, they have struggled this year, and it’s not just a matter of one or two players. It’s not limited to Indian players either. As a unit, we couldn’t meet the expectations. On paper, our batting lineup looks respectable, but we were unable to perform consistently enough to secure a spot in the top four.”