4 min read
Introduction
With only 4 personnel changes from last year, 1 of which involves a replacement, SRH are the epitome of stability and continuity this year. Another interesting fact of SRH’s line-up is that only 2 players are purchased for the minimum base price of 20 lakhs. SRH has a good balance of experience and youth, where the experience is not only limited to T20s but T20s in the IPL. SRH’s playing XI forms itself.
Suggestive Playing XI by Mihir Vohra
Mihir’s SWOT Analysis
strengths
- SRH have a problem of plenty in all departments. In fact, I would go to the extent of saying that as many as 23 players make an outright case to feature in the playing XI. This, in my opinion should promote healthy combination and allow for David Warner to have efficient contingency plans.
- SRH is one of the few teams whose roster is suitable for the venues where they play majority of their games. In all fairness, this would be true even if SRH were to play at completely different venues; such is the depth of their squad that.
weaknesses
- Even though their middle-order put in some strong performances last year, it is still a bit dodgy. That is the area of concern I see in the team.
opportunities
- Given that we will have a mega auction next year, and most of the members of this team will get dispersed due to their reputation and performances, this is one of the best chances for SRH to win the IPL one more time.
- Much of their middle order is youngsters, i.e. Abdul Samad, Abshishek Sharma, Priyam Garg. These individuals have a good opportunity to put in (another) strong season to increase the value of their stock.
threats
- A repeat of one threat from last season, if 2 of Warner, Bairstow and Roy play as the opening pair, Rashid Khan is 100% going to play all 14 games and Jason Holder/Mohammad Nabi given preference for an extra bowling option, Kane Williamson has to sit out. This does make the middle-order a bit more volatile, something they addressed last season by benching Bairstow and playing Saha and Williamson. Given that their batting lineup hasn’t seen any change from last year, this threat still holds true.
player from unsold
Marnus Labuschagne —> Marnus Labuschagne once again, partly because I was surprised that he went unsold despite his unexpectedly strong performances in the recent Big Bash League and his ability to be flexible in the batting order and roll his arms efficiently.
player from another team
I don’t see a player from another team, who will most likely not play a major part in their current team, to add any value to this SRH team. That is not to say that the SRH team is perfect.
key player
Rashid Khan —> Rashid Khan is the only foreigner in the team you’d bet your money on to play all 14 games. David Warner is the captain but he is coming off of an injury. He is only 22 years old and already has 350 T20 wickets to his name. His batting skills have sky-rocketed as is evident from his recent performances and overall T20 strike rate of 145.6. It isn’t really a surprise to say that how Rashid Khan fares this season will play a major part in deciding how far SRH can go this season. Good form cannot be taken for granted in the IPL.
prediction
A strong chance for SRH to go into the playoffs and probably even a step further. Momentum will be the key.
Roster
Schedule
Download
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The Author(s):
Mihir Vohra is the web-developer, designer and content writer at Cricket in Progress! Through Cricket in Progress!, he aims to bring some fresh writing to cricket while wording his views. To say that Mihir is a fan of the game would be an understatement of cosmic proportions. Much credit for Mihir’s attraction towards cricket could be credited to Shane Warne and the way he led the Rajasthan Royals to victory in the inaugural season of IPL. What was seeded in that year culminated into this very website. He has a keen liking for puns, humour and literary drama as will be pretty evident in his words.
