IPL 2019 | Know Your Team - Sunrisers Hyderabad

If there is one team that has maximized its talent, it has to be Sunrisers Hyderabad. Since its inception following the scrapping of Deccan Chargers in 2013, SRH have been punching above their weight in the tournament, winning the tournament once in 2016 and reaching the final last year. In 2017 they had finished third.

Just as RCB’s batting is the envy of other teams, SRH bowling is arguably the best in the league. There is as much quality as there is variety in the attack. They have further strengthened it by adding pacers Basil Thampi and Khaleel Ahmed and left-arm spinner Shahbaz Nadeem to go with the likes of Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Rashid Khan and Siddarth Kaul. The addition of all-rounder Vijay Shankar, who was in good form for India against Australia, and the return of David Warner is a definite plus. Smart selection of players has been the hallmark of SRH and the results speak for it.

Strengths

SRH bowling is their biggest strength and of that there is little doubt, but their batting is stronger than it appears on paper. The return of Warner at the top will add more muscle while also off-setting the departure of Shikhar Dhawan. Shankar’s all-round ability lends more balance.

Weaknesses

The misfiring middle-order and the Indian batting unit have been the problem areas for SRH. The likes of Manish Pandey, Yusuf Pathan, Deepak Hooda didn’t do much last season and it will cause some serious issue if they continue to falter.

Squad

Kane Williamson (captain), David Warner, Jonny Bairstow, Manish Pandey, Shakib Al Hasan, Jonny Bairstow, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Martin Guptill, Vijay Shankar, Deepak Hooda, T Natarajan, Ricky Bhui, Basil Thampi, Sandeep Sharma, Siddarth Kaul, Shreevats Goswami (wk), Khaleel Ahmed, Billy Stanlake, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Shahbaz Nadeem, Siddarth Kaul, Abhishek Sharma,