BENGALURU: Sunrisers Hyderabad did not take much time to announce Kane Williamson as skipper after David Warner received a 12-month ban ahead of IPL 2018. Appointing the Kiwi as captain might not have been too difficult for the franchise, but replacing Warner at the top was. The Sun- Risers opted for Wriddhiman Saha, who has opened in four matches so far. The wicketkeeper-batsman has been given the nod ahead of Warner’s replacement, Alex Hales, who is regarded as a dangerous opener. Allowing Saha to open shows the team management’s trust.
Also, picking him gives them the option of playing an extra bowler or all-rounder, who can be a foreigner. There are various factors, which might have worked in Saha’s favour. The Bengal man scored an astonishing 20-ball hundred in a club match in Kolkata ahead of the 11th edition. He also batted as opener in the practice matches for SunRisers and was asked by the management if he was willing to open for the team and he agreed to it.
Saha is not new to opening, having batted at the top for his domestic side Bengal in the shorter format. “Whenever I play domestic cricket, for that matter also club cricket, I play as an opener in the shorter format. Batting at the top is not new to me,” Saha told Express.
“For my previous IPL team Kings XI also, I opened the innings a few times,” said the player who averages 24.55 in all T20s with a strike-rate of 130.52. In his four matches for SunRisers, Saha might have understood the massive difference in opening consistently for an IPL side and other sides. The standard of bowling is of another level, where a small mistake here or there could lead to a player’s downfall. His scores of 5, 22, 24 and 6 reflect the tough time he has had at the top of the order. It shows that Warner’s big shoes are not easy to fill.
“Warner and Shikhar are said to be one of the best opening pairs in the IPL. Over the years, both the players have played an important role in helping SRH win many a matches in the tournament. So replacing Warner is not an easy job at all. But I am playing as per the instructions of the team, that is to play shots.” added Saha. With Saha not having impressed much with the bat, it would be interesting to see if the team management will stick with him as an opener or move him down the order in the matches to follow.