HYDERABAD: Sunrisers Hyderabad were in dire need of revival after the last edition of the Indian Premier League. They had finished last in the 10-team competition winning only four matches out of 14. What made it worse was that they were the wooden spooners (8th) in 2021 and managed to save themselves from the ignominy in the next season only by a whisker finishing eighth among 10 teams. What made the show more condemnable was the fact that the Hyderabad franchise had always qualified for the play-offs from 2016 to 2020 winning their maiden title in the first attempt.
There were many factors ailing the team but more than anything else they desperately needed a captain who can lead by example. Since David Warner, who holds the distinction for being the most successful captain of the franchise, Hyderabad were struggling to find a leader who can inspire the players to give their best, lift their morale when things are not going their way, and in the process take the team to greater heights.
In their quest for a skipper who can bring stability and calmness in the dressing room, the SRH management broke the bank in the mini auction to sign Pat Cummins for a whopping Rs 20.5 crores, briefly making him the most expensive player in IPL history. Coming into the auction as the ODI World Cup-winning Australian captain, Cummins found himself at the centre of a fierce bidding war, primarily involving Royal Challengers Bengaluru and SRH. It's not that the 30-year-old pacer was the much sought-after player for the the IPL franchises for the first time. Earlier in the 2020 auction, the bowling all-rounder was roped in by Kolkata Knight Riders for Rs 15.5 crores.
Once they acquired the services of Cummins, SRH avoided changing the core of the team, retaining 18 players from the 2023 team of 25. The next biggest signing for them was Travis Head, who cost them Rs 6.80 crores. Overall the franchise spent Rs 30.80 crore in the auction. However, acquiring Cummins and designating him as the skipper was also a kind of gamble SRH had played. Despite him being the Australian skipper in Tests and ODIs, he hasn't led a team in the top-flight T20 tournaments before being announced SRH captain.
In fact, Cummins had not played a T20I match for almost 15 months before representing Australia in two T20Is against New Zealand in February this year. He had also skipped the previous edition of the IPL to focus on the packed international schedule. Fortunately, the gamble worked as despite starting their campaign with a narrow loss against KKR, Hyderabad transformed into a formidable unit as the tournament progressed. Head and Abhishek Sharma became the most feared openers in the league as they kept sending opposition bowlers on a leather-hunt more often than not. The team set the record for the highest IPL total, twice before storming into the play-offs for the first time since 2020.
The good show on the field also brought back fans to the stands, as they flocked the venue at Uppal, Hyderabad for every home match of the team. The facility witnessed a capacity crowd in almost every contest with the fans hoping for an encore of the 2016 season. Apart from leading the side with distinction, Cummins turned out to be the star performer for the team with the ball claiming 15 wickets from 13 matches sitting only behind T Natarajan as far as the most successful bowler of SRH is concerned. He proved handy with the bat as well playing some useful knocks if not the match-winning innings.
While speaking to the journalists during a promotional event a few days ago in the city, Cummins had said that his immediate goal is to guide the team to title-triumph. Asserting that his boys were really playing well, the skipper had said that all of them are keen to finish off the IPL campaign on a high. The Hyderabad franchise have already taken a step towards achieving their captain's goal by finishing in the top four and making it to the play-offs. They won their last league match against visiting Punjab Kings by four wickets on Sunday to further consolidate their position.
The need of the hour now is to keep the good form going for the next few days as it can not only help them win their second IPL title but also give Cummins his third major trophy after winning the World Test Championship and ODI World Cup for the team from Down Under last year.