Sunrisers Hyderabad were going through a severe period of stagnation in the last three Indian Premier League (IPL) seasons – finishing at the bottom of the table twice, and in eighth place once. It was a drastic fall from being one of the most consistent franchises, one that had qualified for the playoffs in every season since winning the final in 2016, to becoming one of the worst-performing franchises in the league.
Things had started deteriorating in the IPL 2021 season when their performance took a severe dip, giving birth to an infamous saga between the SRH management and David Warner, who was not only sacked from captaincy, but also kept out of the XI in the second half of the season. He was released in the subsequent season and SRH assembled a new squad in the mega auction, which looked quite strong and formidable on paper, with a new coaching setup and a new captain in Aiden Markram at the helm.
But the results were still missing as an eighth-place finish in IPL 2022 was followed by an even worse, bottom-of-the-table finish in 2023.
Despite having so many big Indian and overseas names in the squad, they failed to find the right balance and proper execution in both seasons and could not succeed at all. Meanwhile, their sister franchise in the SA20 League — the Sunrisers Eastern Cape — had won consecutive titles under the leadership of the same captain, Markram.
But everything changed once the IPL 2024 season arrived as SRH finally managed to drag themselves out of the doldrums, with World Cup-winning captain Pat Cummins leading the charge.
10 games into the season, SRH are firmly ahead of most of the teams in the playoff race now. They are sitting comfortably in the fourth position having won six out of their 10 games so far and need to win only a couple of more matches at most to confirm a spot in the playoffs.
So, what brought about their change in fortunes suddenly after such a long period of struggle? We shall have a look at it here.
The Batting Revolution, Orchestrated by Head & Klaasen
SRH have been one of the most exciting batting units to watch this season. They have notched up 200+ totals for fun throughout this edition and they also went quite close to breaching the 300-run mark on a couple of occasions.
SRH batters have hit the most number of sixes (127) among all teams in this season. They have also scored their runs at an overall strike rate of 166.19. Only Kolkata Knight Riders (166.67) have recorded a better strike rate than SRH.
This is in stark contrast to their batting performance last season, when SRH hit the second least number of sixes (84) and recorded the third-worst strike rate (136.46) among all teams.
This batting revolution has been largely due to the breathtaking performances of two of their overseas stars.
One of them is the Australian superstar Travis Head. The southpaw has been taking almost every bowling attack apart this season. Batting at the top of the order, he has amassed 396 runs so far, including three fifties and a century. In fact, his runs have come at an excellent average of 44 and an astonishing strike rate of 194.11.
The other player is South Africa’s Heinrich Klaasen. He has just carried his form from last season forward into this edition, amassing 337 runs so far at an outstanding strike rate of 189.33.
The fact that Klaasen has scored these runs batting in the middle-order makes it even more valuable. There are not many players who succeed in such a grand manner in the middle-order, and here is Klaasen, doing it with ease, grace, and class.
Rise of the Gen-Next
All these years, SRH seemed a bit short on reliable domestic players. They did have Rahul Tripathi performing at his peak for a couple of seasons but his performances have also taken a severe dip of late. But the Sunrisers have found the assurance needed in the likes of Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy, and Abdul Samad, whom they have groomed for the past few seasons.
In fact, Reddy's impact in the middle-order has been so huge that he has now pushed a seasoned player like Aiden Markram out of the XI. The 20-year-old has strengthened their middle-order immensely, having scored runs consistently in every match. He has amassed 219 runs so far at an impressive average and strike rate of 54.75 and 154.22 respectively. Reddy has also chipped in with three wickets this season, showing how valuable he can be with his seam-bowling attribute.
Abhishek Sharma has been as lethal as his opening partner Travis Head at the top of the order. The youngster always had the talent but he has taken his game a notch higher this season. He has accumulated 315 runs so far at a mind-boggling strike rate of 208.60. He has gotten SRH off to quick starts consistently, creating problems for the bowlers in the powerplay.
Besides them, Abdul Samad has also walked in and played important cameos for SRH from time to time. His tally of 148 runs down the order has come at an impressive strike rate of 187.34 as well.
Captain Charismatic Leading From the Front
There was a lot of noise when Sunrisers Hyderabad bought Pat Cummins in the IPL 2024 auction for a whopping sum of Rs 20.25 crores. They didn't stop there and made him the captain as well, drawing further criticism from the majority of the fans. But the SRH think tank and Cummins have proven all of them wrong as he has led them from the front with notable performances.
While he might not have drawn as much attention as their batting stars, Cummins has gone about doing his job quietly. He has picked up 12 wickets in the 10 games he has played so far and has managed his resources beautifully. The bowling changes, plans, and field placements have been on point, and Cummins himself has been responsible for breaking many crucial partnerships at critical stages of the match.
He wasn't the most popular captain ahead of this season, but he has surely proven with his performances that he is worth his weight in gold.
The Natarajan Effect
SRH were the second-worst side in terms of picking up wickets last season, and nothing much has changed this time as they have just improved to being the third-worst wicket-taking side. It's mainly because of their batting that they have been winning most of their matches this season.
But one bowler who has held things together in this madness for SRH is T Natarajan. He is the Purple Cap holder in IPL 2024 at present, with 15 wickets to his name in only eight matches, claiming a wicket every 12.8 deliveries.
Cummins has used him sporadically in every phase of the innings, with at least one over being used in the powerplay, one in the middle overs and two in the death overs. And he has delivered his best in all phases, giving them crucial breakthroughs in demanding situations.
He showed his class even in the last game against the Rajasthan Royals, registering figures of 2/35 in his four overs. He picked up the crucial wickets of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shimron Hetmyer and brought SRH back into the game when it looked like the Royals would walk away with another win.
A Season To Cherish, Irrespective of What Happens From Here Onwards
The performances of these players have really turned SRH's fortunes around and they will be eager to deliver their best in the upcoming games as well to seal their berth in the playoffs.
This has definitely been a season to remember for the SRH fans after some really disappointing years, and they will cherish these memories irrespective of the outcome in the playoffs.
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