Sunrisers Hyderabad has scraped only one win in the initial phase of the tournament. SRH has looked like a bunch of misfits put together to somehow field a team for the sake of representing the franchise in IPL 2022.
Their horrible auction and retention strategy has left the team with more problems than solutions. The only win they have registered in the tournament is against a distraught CSK, who is on a losing streak.
SRH management went hard in the auctions for Nicholas Pooran to bolster their middle order. However, Pooran has never impacted the IPL history, so it was a grave mistake to spend ₹10.75 crores on him.
They released their best performers, David Warner and Rashid Khan, with only one bad season to their name. SRH has tried to mould a young team under the leadership of Kane Williamson but has failed to achieve the goal so far in Tata IPL 2022.
Here’s what SRH should do to qualify for playoffs:
1- Change the opening combination
SRH lacks firepower at the top, with Kane Williamson and Abhishek Sharma being slow starters. They fall behind in the game during the powerplay, which puts unnecessary pressure on the middle order. They need to promote Rahul Tripathi in place of Abhishek Sharma to partner with Williamson at the top.
Tripathi is a dasher, and his inclusion in the opening combination will grant the middle order assurance of not lacking behind from the get-go in the initial phase of their inning. Tripathi has already done a fabulous job as an opener, for now, defunct Rising Pune Supergiants. So promoting him is their best bet to take the game head-on in the powerplay.
2- Slotting Pooran at three
Nicholas Pooran is at his best when he bats at the number three position in the T20s. His record for the West Indies international team in the T20s while playing at three is admired.
SRH needs to give him more responsibility and show trust in his abilities after spending a considerable amount on him during the auction. Pooran can carry the inning on his own if he gets going for SRH.
3- Kane Williamson’s batting approach
Kane Williamson needs to break his shell and play more shots at the top. Only then SRH can go on to post big totals or chase huge targets. Williamson has been batting with a lesser than a hundred strike rate as an opener in IPL 2022.
For an opener to have this kind of strike rate is criminal in T20 format. He needs to let his bat do the talk and counterattack the opposition in order to set the stage for middle-order batters in the team.
4- Inclusion of Glenn Philips in playing XI
SRH need an explosive batter in the middle overs who can destroy opponents along with Nicholas Pooran and take the team towards a winning total. The kiwi wicket-keeper batter is a better option than Markram, whose natural game is not that explosive.
Glenn Philips can hit the ball from the get-go and help SRH grasp momentum in just a few overs in the game. With Williamson, Tripathi, Pooran and Philips in the top-four, SRH will turn into a team that the opposition will fear bowling to.
Also read: IPL 2022: 3 tactical changes that CSK needs to qualify for playoffs