IPL 2020 – Season review: Sunrisers Hyderabad – One step short of IPL final

Sunrisers Hyderabad have been one of the most consistent teams of the IPL. They have qualified for the playoffs every year since 2016. They have never had the biggest superstars, but have punched above their weight year after year. This time was no different. Despite losing their spearhead Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and a few other players like Mitch Marsh to injury, SRH didn’t let their spirits down, won 4 games on the trot and pulled through till the Qualifier 2. It wasn’t the best of seasons for them, but they made it memorable in the second half. Here are the positives and struggles of SRH this year, along with what’s next for them.

Positives

The biggest positive this year for SRH was the emergence of T Natarajan. He bowled yorkers with an unreal consistency. According to Star Sports Data, Natarajan bowled as many 65-70 Yorkers this season, almost 3 times more than anyone else. He picked up 16 wickets despite bowling in the toughest stages in the game. His scalps included big names like MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Ab de Villiers. He has the ability to bowl 6 yorkers in a row and he showed that match after match. His accuracy was better than any other death bowler. This being Natarajan’s first full season makes it even more praiseworthy. He’s a gem SRH have unearthed and is bound to serve them for long.

Another big positive for them was Kane Williamson’s batting. Kane, who isn’t regarded as a typical T20 player, has time and again proved his worth. This season too, despite not being preferred early on, he went on to score more than 300 runs at an SR of 133 in 12 games. He led them to the win in the eliminator and also almost helped them cross the line in Qualifier 2. He acts as the perfect pressure observer. He showed us throughout the season he can hit a 25 ball 41 to accelerate the innings or can also hit 50 off 44 to take his team home.

He ‘Kane’ do anything they say ?

And he did ?#OrangeArmy #KeepRising #IPL2020 pic.twitter.com/tm5us1R18i

— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) November 13, 2020

Struggles

The biggest downfall for SRH this year was their lack of middle-order batting. They had a strong top 4, but behind those 4 pillars, there wasn’t any support. They filled up spots of 5, 6, 7 with youngsters like Priyam Garg, Abdul Samad and Abhishek Sharma, and later on Jason Holder, but none of them really turned the heat on or gave enough cushion to the top 4. All of them are talented with Holder even playing a match-winning cameo in the eliminator, but then the other two spots were unstable. They tried Vijay Shankar too but lost him to injury. They missed some consistent explosiveness in the middle order.

The second biggest weakness for them was one-dimensional bowling. Yes, their bowling unit did well overall, but if the batsmen went after the bowlers, there wasn’t anybody apart from Rashid to stop the onslaught. Sandeep Sharma, Jason Holder and Natarajan bowled at a similar pace. They didn’t have an out and out wicket-taker, someone like Anrich Nortje or Lockie Ferguson who could bowl fast and rattle the batsman. They desperately missed a bowler who could bowl the 145km/h range. They had Billy Stanlake in the team, but due to their unstable middle order, they had to play Holder to add meat to the batting, and hence both these factors combined and led to a string of losses.

What Next?

Nevertheless, SRH put up an exemplary performance, despite all the injury concerns. Going ahead, they should try and utilise Mohammad Nabi a lot more. He’s one of the best finishers in the format and gives a few overs of off-spin as well. Priyam Garg doesn’t come across as a T20 player, he’s more orthodox.

The story of Abdul Samad ?

His journey from a small town in Jammu and Kashmir to making his #Dream11IPL debut!@ABDULSAMAD___1 #OrangeArmy #KeepRising #IPL2020

— SunRisers Hyderabad (@SunRisers) November 13, 2020

SRH already have Williamson and Pandey in the team. Hence, they can perhaps look for an India finisher, perhaps get someone like Yusuf Pathan back. They should look to hone Abdul Samad and fix his position at 5-6. He looks to be a great find. And try and bring in a pace bowler who can crank up higher levels than what the current team does. They came close this time, and with these minor adjustments, SRH could go all the way next year.