IPL 2022 | Shane Watson opens up on Simon Katich unceremonious exit from SRH

Former Australian all-rounder and assistant head coach of the Delhi Capitals, Shane Watson, has reckoned that alarm bells rung in the case of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) after his former teammate Simon Katich left the franchise immediately after the mega-auction ahead of IPL 2022.

Katich, who was appointed as deputy to head coach Tom Moody by the Sunrisers management, stepped back from his role following the event in Bengaluru back in February.

Officially, Katich claimed bio-bubble fatigue as the reason behind his departure.However, reports in Australian media suggested that the former batsman was unhappy that the pre-planned strategy before the auction didn't see the light of the day during the event.

"Katich disagreed with how the team was being managed and felt that pre-auction plans were disregarded," said reports in Australian media.

Sunrisers had an apalling start to their IPL 2022 campaign against the Rajasthan Royals (RR), where they were totally outplayed in all facets of the game.

Speaking to the Grade Cricketer, Watson delved into the Katich issue and the state of the SRH management.

"Alarm bells started when Simon Katich left just after the auction. That's normally not a great sight because Katich is one of the most generally good people. It's really injustice really if people really go against what they say. So obviously something has gone down there that Katich stepped away immediately and won't be a part of it. That's a warning sign to start with," the Delhi Capitals assistant coach stated. 

The Hyderabad franchise has been embroiled in controversy since the last season when they not only sacked but also dumped their most successful player David Warner midway through the season.

While Watson did concede that SRH doesn't look particularly strong in the absence of David Warner and Rashid Khan, their performance against the Royals suggests a lot going around in their set-up off the field.

"The make-up of their team is not incredibly strong and then how they have performed in the first game. Yes, Rajasthan Royals have a very good squad, and they played really well, but it's not looking great. It feels like there is a lot of stuff around the team that is obviously not helping everything on the field," Watson added. 

He also touched upon the influence on the team environment when a top player like Warner is treated as he was by the management. Sunrisers will look to shrug off their poor performance from the first game when they take on Lucknow Supergiants on April 4.