Sunrisers Hyderabad - IPL 2023 Squad Analysis 

image-lfta9paiSunrisers Hyderabad (Source: iplt20.com)

It's that time of the year when people across India will vibe for the music of the cork hitting the willow. The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 is just a few steps away. In the first match of the new season, defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) go head-to-head with four-time title winners Chennai Super Kings (CSK) at Ahmedabad on March 31.

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If you turn the pages of the marquee event back then you will find that Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) is one of the teams that have IPL silverware in their trophy cabinet. It was the 2016's IPL where Virat Kohli of Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) was orchestrating runs for fun but couldn't take his team over the victory line falling short of the target set by David Warner-led SRH in the grand finale.  

Talking about the Orange Army, they are always known for their workhorses on the bowling front with some young prodigies and gentle ball strikers on the batting side. Over the years SRH has used various captains namely- Kumar Sangakkara, Cameron White, Shikhar Dhawan, Daren Sammy, David Warner, Kane Williamson, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Manish Pandey, with Warner being the best of the pack with his sample size of leading the side in 67 matches besides owning a title.



After being controversially sidelined from the franchise in the 2021 edition of the cash-rich league, Williamson was made the captain and his low returns both with bat and result have put curtains to the Kiwi legend's stay with the franchise. But they are back here again fresh and indeed it will be a new beginning under the leadership of South African Aiden Markram.

Let us go deep into the 25-man SRH squad for the 16th edition of the IPL.

Batters: Aiden Markram, Rahul Tripathi, Harry Brook, Mayank Agarwal, Abdul Samad, Heinrich Klaasen, Glenn Phillips, Samarth Vyas, Upendra Yadav, Anmolpreet Singh, Nitish Reddy


All-Rounders: Marco Jansen, Abhishek Sharma, Washington Sundar, Sanvir Singh, Vivrant Sharma


Bowlers: Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Thangarasu Natarajan, Akeal Hosein, Kartik Tyagi, Adil Rashid, Umran Malik, Mayank Markande, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Mayank Dagar


Strengths of SRH FOR IPL 2023

  • Having a Plethora of Star Bowlers: As mentioned earlier, SRH has always had multiple match-winning bowlers in their armoury. They have all the bases covered on this side of the squad. If you talk about swing then they have Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Marco Jansen. If you want tight fiery spells in the middle overs, you have Umran Malik, Karthik Tyagi and T Natarajan in the slog overs who nail perfect yorkers. Yet to go into the spinners and as we go then Washington Sundar and Akeal Hosein doing good in all phases of the game, while Adil Rashid and Mayank Markande are the leg spinners in the team.
  • Species of Fearless Batters: The Hyderabad-based franchise has exactly what a T20 side needs i.e., having batters who are ready to take risks. While Mayank Agarwal, Rahul Tripathi, Abhishek Sharma, Abdul Samad and Washington Sundar come under the local quota, Aiden Markram, Glenn Phillips, Harry Brook and Heinrich Klaasen are the explosive overseas hitters who won't think twice before going after the bowlers. On any day, these batters can take the game away from the opposition's grasp in a blink of an eye.

Weakness of SRH for IPL 2023

  • Absence of Quality Indian Wrist Spinner: The team management failed to get a proper Indian leg spinner in the mini-auction that took place at the fag end of the previous year. Given that the leg spinners are proven match winners, especially in the shortest format of the game, this was a big fiasco. Though Mayank Markande and Abdul Samad can bowl a few handy leg breaks, but they can't be trusted under crunch situations. Moreover, Markande's career has dipped like DJ Bravo's slower delivery and has awful stats since his successful first season with five-time champions Mumbai Indians. 

Opportunities of SRH for IPL 2023

  • Aiden Markram- The Captain: High on confidence after becoming the inaugural SA20 champions, the Sunrisers fraternity made Markram their skipper for the upcoming IPL as well.  After his triumph in SA20, the all-rounder was made the torch-bearer of the South African T20I side. Markram now has the opportunity to take SRH towards another glory.
  • Mayank Agarwal- The Batter: Relieved from the burden of captaincy, Agarwal has found a new home in SRH. He will be opening the batting for the new franchise and will look to concentrate on his primary skill i.e., batting. He has been part of this marquee event since 2011 but has yet to have a breakthrough season with the bat. The Bengaluru-born looked wow whenever he batted but couldn't maintain consistency.

Threats of SRH for IPL 2023

  • Lack of Innings Builders: After thrusting Kane Williamson from the SRH family, they haven't gone after any similar role-player in the mini-auction that took place a few months earlier. If the explosive batters fall playing to their strengths, there is a need for a batter who can soak in the pressure and steer the ship.
  • Having Problems of Plenty: Though this is a good headache to have, SRH might stumble in selecting the precise four overseas players, which might open up one or two weak links. With Markram, the skipper, unavailable for their first T20, the Orange Army might slip on the foundation itself.

image-lftuc1n2SWOT Analysis of Sunrisers Hyderabad (Source: OneCricket)


Prediction

Given the squad SRH have, they should do well this season. Aiden Markram has gotten to an exponential start to his captaincy career winning his country's mega event in the 20-overs format on the first attempt is now leading South Africa as well. Trusted to do the job by the management, Markram and co should march to the final.