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Veteran spinner Ravichandran Ashwin expressed surprise at the Sunrisers Hyderabad's (SRH) decision to appoint Pat Cummins as their captain for the upcoming IPL season. This comes after SRH acquired Cummins for a record-breaking price of ₹20.5 crore at the auction, following his release by the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). Ashwin believes SRH might have made a strategic misstep. He suggests they should have retained Aiden Markram as captain, considering Markram's success leading the Sunrisers Eastern Cape to consecutive titles in the recent SA20 league.
R Ashwin shocked over Pat Cummins appointment as SRH captain
"Sunrisers have hit two titles back to back at the SA20. They’ve done it with two extraordinary teams. I was quite shocked, actually. They have made Pat Cummins the captain. I was having a small hunch that they would go with Markram. Markram had an extraordinary season for his franchise in the SA20. The cross-pollination would have been amazing,” Ashwin said on his YouTube channel.
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While Pat Cummins boasts a successful captaincy record in ODI and Test formats, he lacks experience leading a T20 team. This has raised some eyebrows, with veteran spinner R Ashwin suggesting the Sunrisers Hyderabad might need to carefully strategize their team composition.
Ashwin highlights the challenge of integrating several star players into a cohesive unit. Names like explosive batsman Travis Head, the world-renowned spinner Wanindu Hasaranga, and young pace prodigy Fazalhaq Farooqi are just a few of the talented players SRH will need to seamlessly blend under Cummins' leadership.
"Pat Cummins is a no-brainer. But with Cummins as a captain, they will have a problem of plenty in the team with so many stars. Keeping Travis Head as backup, they would go for Markram, Pat Cummins, (Heinrich) Klaasen, and (Wanindu) Hasaranga. Because Hasaranga is a crucial facet for them. If they decide Hasaranga is not needed, in some venues they can play (Fazalhaq) Farooqi or Marco Jansen instead of him. This is what I thought because it makes sense," Ashwin concluded.
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Meanwhile, Cummins, in a video posted by SRH, said:
“I am ready. I am pumped. Yeah…let’s go do it. I am excited. Great to be here. Can’t wait to get the season started. I know a fair few of the boys but a few guys I haven’t met yet. Can’t wait to get started”.
Fresh off leading Australia to victory in both the ICC Test Championship and ODI World Cup in 2023, Cummins was primed to be a hot commodity at the IPL mega-auction held in Dubai late last year. His proven leadership and world-class pace bowling made him a coveted player for several teams.
SRH and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) emerged as the frontrunners in a heated bidding war for Cummins. Ultimately, SRH secured his services for a staggering Rs 20.5 crore, setting a new IPL record for the most expensive player ever. However, this record was short-lived. Another intense bidding battle saw KKR snatch Cummins' bowling teammate, Mitchell Starc, for a record-breaking Rs 24.75 crore, making Starc the new IPL kingpin.
Notably, SRH will start their IPL 2024's campaign against KKR on March 23 in Kolkata.
SRH's schedule for IPL 2024's first leg:
vs Kolkata Knight Riders - March 23 - Kolkata - 7:30 PM IST
vs Mumbai Indians - March 27 - Hyderabad - 7:30 PM IST
vs Gujarat Titans - March 31 - Ahmedabad - 3:30 PM IST
vs Chennai Super Kings - April 5 - Hyderabad - 7:30 PM IST
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