The excitement among the cricket fraternity and fans is getting crazier as the auctions of 2022 season of IPL is nearing. The addition of two new teams based from Lucknow and Ahmedabad has also meant that the strategies and dynamics would be a lot different and unique from the upcoming seasons.
590 players have got selected to go under the hammer. It will be a mega auction this time and the old teams have already made their retentions, while the new teams have drafted the players to their franchises. The auctions of 2022 season would be held on Feb 12th and 13th respectively in Bengaluru.
Let's discuss about the auction strategy of Sunrisers Hyderabad.
History:
SRH has had great moments in the history of IPL. They were formed in 2013 and reached the playoffs in their very first season. For the next two seasons, they couldn't make it to playoffs. But bang in 2016, they not just made it to playoffs, not just to the finals, but also won their first title.
And since then, they have consistently made it to playoffs till 2020. They finished third in 2017, but came back and made it to finals in 2018. 2019 and 2020 were decent as well as they finished fourth and third respectively.
The franchise is known for the players who have shined with individual brilliances. David Warner had won the orange cap in 2015, 2017 and 2019. Kane Williamson too won the orange cap in 2018. Bhuvaneshwar Kumar won the purple cap in 2016 and 2017 respectively.
Franchise details:
Here's the briefing of the basic details of the franchise -
Team name : Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Owners : Kalanithi Maran (Sun TV Network).
CEO : Kaviya Maran.
Purchase price : ₹85.05cr (US$ 11 million).
They have announced their coaching and support staff for the 2022 season.
Head coach : Tom Moody
Assistant coach : Simon Katich
Strategic and batting coach : Brian Lara
Bowling coach : Muttiah Muralitharan
Fast-bowling coach : Dale Steyn
Fielding coach and scout : Hemang Badani
Squad of 2021:
Here's how their squad looked like in the previous season:-
Kane Williamson, David Warner, Abhishek Sharma, Basil Thampi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Manish Pandey, Mohammad Nabi, Rashid Khan, Sandeep Sharma, Shahbaz Nadeem, Shreevats Goswami, Siddarth Kaul, Khaleel Ahmed, T Natarajan, Vijay Shankar, Wriddhiman Saha, Virat Singh, Priyam Garg, Mitchell Marsh, Jason Holder, Abdul Samad, Kedar Jadhav, Mujeeb-ur-Rahman, Jagadeesha Suchith and Sherfane Rutherford.
Retention for 2022:
SRH have retained three players going into the auctions.
Kane Williamson : He was retained for ₹14cr. The captain of New Zealand cricket team is an experienced campaigner. He's a versatile option as a batter, who can bat at the top of the order or in the middle. He's a calm and composed leader who remains unscathed in the toughest of situations, something which is needed in SRH. Him being a prolific run scorer in IPL and in international cricket makes him a good choice of retention.
Abdul Samad : He was retained for ₹4cr. He's an uncapped Indian player who has the abilities of scoring runs at a quick rate. He can also bowl leg spin. Being a youngster, his learning curve would help him get better with more experience. With time, he would be a valuable asset to the franchise and might well be to the Indian team as well.
Umran Malik : He was retained for ₹4cr. Towards the fag end of the previous season, he debuted in IPL and impressed everyone with his sheer pace. He's young and energetic. He can bowl at express pace consistently which isn't an easy skill to possess. With more exposure to the best players in the world, he would only improve and be the better version of himself.
They've got an experienced campaigner like Kane Williamson, around whom the team could be built. They've also got young faces like Abdul Samad and Umran Malik who would be the future of the franchise. They're now left with a purse money of ₹68 crores.
Players to target:
SRH has had the history of being the bowling team. Their bowlers have won several matches for them in the past. So they must stick to their strengths and buy some quality pacers from the auction. Here are some of those ;-
Mohammed Shami - Not just an experienced bowler, but also a big name in world cricket. Him being the lead bowler would help the youngsters. He can bowl in powerplay and is also a decent option in death overs.
To back him up, they could target the likes of Indian pacers like Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel, Sandeep Sharma, Khaleel Ahmed and so on who have been doing well over the years in IPL and domestic circuit. They can also target the overseas pacers like Kane Richardson, Chris Woakes, Trent Boult, Kagiso Rabada and so on. This would give a really good depth of pacers.
The spinners play a key role in T20s. IPL isn't any different. The key to control the middle overs is to have good wicket taking spinners. There are some really good names in the list of players who fit under this bill. Here are some of those ;-
Wanindu Hasaranga - He's been absolutely sensational over the years. He's a genuine wicket taker and hardly goes expensive. His batting skills down the order is an added advantage. He would be a great addition for the side.
To back him up, there are many quality Indian spinners like Amit Mishra, Ravichandran Ashwin, R Sai Kishore, Murugan Ashwin and so on. The overseas spinners may not be the viable options if not for the extra skills.
SRH have struggled to get quality lower middle order batters in the past. They either used to lack the experience or the application from the players. This time around, they might have to look at some of the clean hitters of the ball. Some of them are :-
Liam Livingstone - He's someone who can smash the fast bowlers all around the park. He's a decent player of spin as well. Not to forget some overs of bowling he can offer. He can spin the ball either ways and that's his speciality. He would be a valuable asset to the side. His form over the years has been good too.
To back him up, they can try the likes of Shivam Dube, Rishi Dhawan, Shahrukh Khan, Deepak Hooda and so on who have been doing well in the domestic circuit. The overseas options include the likes of David Weise, David Miller, James Neesham and so on.
In the past season, SRH's main reason for the failure was a natural stroke maker at the top. Either their batters were out of form or were consuming a lot of deliveries to get settled. Here are some of the players who could strike at a good rate with consistency ;-
Jonny Bairstow - You can't look past this man. He's already been the part of the franchise before and has done a very good job as a top order batter. Not to forget that he's a wicketkeeper as well. Him at the top would give them a reliable opener who can go bonkers from the word go.
To back him up would be the likes of Ishan Kishan, Rahul Tripathi, Rohan Kadam, Mohammad Azharuddeen and so on. The overseas options are great too. It includes the likes of Quinton De Kock, Evin Lewis, Tom Banton, Josh Philippe and so on.
SWOT Analysis:
SRH has historically been a team with good bowling unit which wins them matches most of the times. Their top order has been good over the years. But their middle and lower middle order have always been on the weaker side.
In order to win IPL matches, a team has to cover all facets of the game. In batting, a team is to have a good opening pair, middle order consisting of an anchor and aggressive batters who can bat around him. A good bowling unit that can bowl extremely well across different phases.
Their opening was an issue the last season. They've to get a good opening pair in the auctions, one with hood consistency and the other with aggressive nature. With Kane Williamson already retained, they can go for the aggressive middle and lower middle order batters to bat around him.
With the bowling, their unit was very good. But now they've to rebuild. They've to get bowlers who are versatile. Those who can bowl in at least two phases among powerplay overs, middle overs and death overs. That would bring good versatility to the bowling lineup.
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