“It is very important for us; it is a do or die for us. Last year, in the same situation, RCB came up and won six in a row. Why not us this year? It is putting in 100 per cent (effort) and the rest we will see,” Nitish Kumar Reddy said to the host broadcaster after Sunrisers Hyderabad‘s (SRH) morale-boosting win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Chennai. As it happened, Daniel Vettori, SRH’s head coach, also shared similar thoughts on how the franchise is trying to take inspiration from RCB’s stunning comeback in the 2024 IPL.
From SRH’s perspective, they are on the right path as it is imperative for the players to keep their spirits up during a difficult season. But in reality, SRH have a lot of work to do in order to chisel out the right path and qualify for the last-four. Currently, they sit at a lowly eighth spot, with just six points to their name. Their NRR also doesn’t make for good reading: -1.103. However, amid the doom and gloom, there is a silver lining – SRH did tweak their ultra-aggressive batting template for the game against CSK.
While chasing down a target of 155, on a tricky deck, SRH had found themselves in a spot of bother at 54 for 3 in the ninth over. Ishan Kishan and Kamindu Mendis then played sensibly to stitch a timely stand. And that was followed by another valuable, unbeaten partnership of 49 between Nitish and Mendis to take the side home.
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The essence of those two alliances was that the SRH management shelved their original template, with an eye on playing according to the prevailing conditions and the situation of the game. Somewhere it tells us that SRH can execute their plans in tricky climes or for that matter when they lose early wickets.
Even in their previous game against Mumbai Indians, they showed the required mental strength to recover to some extent after finding themselves in all kinds of trouble at 5 for 35. Unfortunately for the Hyderabad franchise, their bowling unit couldn’t make much of an impression as they hurtled to one more loss.
Just scratch the surface a little more, and you will notice that only Harshal Patel from SRH makes it to the list of the top 10 wicket-takers in the 2025 IPL. And his effectiveness is mostly confined to two-paced decks. Pat Cummins and Mohammed Shami, the two experienced hands in the pace department, have economy rates of 9.6 and 10.7 respectively. Zeeshan Ansari, the young spinner, has showcased glimpses of his promise but enough catches have gone down off his bowling. Basically, there are worry lines on the bowling side of things too.
The main question still remains unanswered. Can SRH follow in the footprints of RCB last season and script a heist? Logic says unlikely. Although the win against CSK, in conditions not exactly suited to their style of play, would have uplifted the sagging spirits of the camp.
Also Read: CSK vs SRH: Stephen Fleming Blames Auction Missteps for Team’s Struggles