Sunrisers Hyderabad have once again backed their batting strength by opting to buy batters instead of strengthening their bowling unit. It is obvious that they believe they can out bat the opposition in every game. Will the ploy help them when the tyre hits the road?
Former Indian skipper Anil Kumble said Sunrisers’ ploy to go after Liam Livingstone, who was purchased for Rs 13 crore, was an interesting call especially since they have three established players in the overseas slot. Skipper Pat Cummins, Travis Head and Heinrich Klaasen are obvious starters in every game so where will Livingstone fit in.
“I think Liam Livingstone, as a buy, certainly makes sense in a T20 line-up, irrespective of his performances last season with RCB. He’s the kind of player who can change a game in just a few overs; that’s the way he bats. On top of that, he’s extremely flexible. He can open, bat at No. 3, or play in the middle order. That said, spending ₹13 crore becomes an interesting call when you already have a bowling captain in Pat Cummins, who bats lower down the order, along with Travis Head and Heinrich Klaasen — three overseas slots that are almost fixed,” Kumble said on TATA IPL Auction Review show.
Sunrisers ended up with funds left but very few bowling options available: Kumble
The Hyderabad based franchisee also needed a spin option but instead they opted for another batter. Kumble said Sunrisers were left with funds in their kitty but have very few bowling options in the tournament. “SRH also needed a spin option, and instead they went for another batter. Clearly, SRH are backing themselves to take the game away from the opposition with their batting. They’ve done that in the past, so this seems to be very much in line with their approach. I also feel they may have overestimated the value of uncapped Indian players early on. Someone like Salil Arora, we saw Kartik Sharma go to CSK for ₹14.2 crore and SRH probably expected similar bidding pressure. They held back money thinking there would be a fight for these players, but that didn’t quite happen. As a result, they ended up with funds left but very few bowling options available. At that point, they realised they had Salil at ₹1.5 crore and money remaining, but no bowlers to pick from. So, they decided to go all-in on Liam Livingstone and that’s exactly how it played out,” he stated.
Will the lack of bowling options and depth cost Sunrisers? “When you’re looking to strengthen your bowling and then decide to strengthen your batting instead, it’s a very different approach. Clearly, they’re backing themselves to out-bat the opposition — something they managed to do in the past. You would have expected them to add someone who provides solidity alongside Pat Cummins, but they’ve consciously chosen not to do that. Eshan Malinga did bowl well last season, but where does he fit into this line-up now, that remains unclear. If he does come in, it looks quite similar to last season’s line-up, especially when you factor in the presence of Ishan Kishan at the time,” Kumble said.
Cummins is the only bowler who can consistently hold one end: Uthappa
Batting will continue to dominate the Sunrisers’ thought process. They are putting all their money on it and hoping that their heavy weights will pull them through in every game. Former India player Robin Uthappa said they have stayed true to their narrative.
“Nothing has really changed. SRH have taken a clear stand, they want to win the championship on the back of their batting, at full tilt. If you look at this auction and the way they’ve gone about it, they’ve stayed true to that narrative. They haven’t gone after an Indian bowler who could support Pat Cummins, Harshal Patel or Jaydev Unadkat. We know Harshal can pick up wickets, but he can also be expensive. The same goes for Unadkat. Pat Cummins is the only bowler who can consistently hold one end. Nitish Reddy is still developing as an all-rounder, so how much responsibility will he get? SRH are batting like they want to breach 300 every game. But the question is, where does Liam Livingstone fit into this line-up? You already have Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen, Pat Cummins and Eshan Malinga occupying overseas slots. Are they planning to chase every game? Or are they accepting that their bowling lacks depth, especially with some bowlers being in the latter stages of their careers? The youth factor in the bowling unit just isn’t there right now,” Uthappa said.
Abhinav Mukund said surprisingly Sunrisers have only spent four percent of their purse on bowlers. “There were top buys for them late in the auction, Liam Livingstone for ₹13 crore and Jack Edwards, another middle-order batter, for ₹3 crore. They have a strong all-rounder stack and wicket-keeping options as well. But the most interesting part is that they spent just four percent of their purse on bowling after letting Mohammed Shami go to Lucknow Super Giants. That clearly tells you they believe bowling is an area where other teams will heavily invest, while they’re confident they can succeed without matching that trend,” Mukund said.
