The 2-day IPL auction saw some amazing turn of events as a number of star players like Dale Steyn and Lasith Malinga attracted no buyers. Unknown rookie players attracted a number of bidders where the franchise had a little bid-war as well to get them to their side.
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IPL 2018: SWOT Analysis of the Sunrisers Hyderabad
Sunrisers Hyderabad was no different as they went all gun blazing for some of their older players. They retained only two of their players in the form of David Warner and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. But they didn’t hesitate to use the RTM card for Shikhar Dhawan and Rashid Khan.
As the bidding war is over and the side is ready with their squad, let us try to analyze the side with SWOT method.
Sunrisers Hyderabad Squad:
David Warner, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Manish Pandey, Rashid Khan, Shikhar Dhawan, Wriddhiman Saha, Siddarth Kaul, Deepak Hooda, Syed Khaleel Ahmed, Sandeep Sharma, Kane Williamson, Carlos Brathwaite, Shakib Al Hasan, Yusuf Pathan, Shreevats Goswami, Mohammad Nabi, Chris Jordan, Basil Thampi, T Natarajan, Sachin Baby, Bipul Sharma, Syed Mehdi Hasan, Ricky Bhui and Tanmay Agarwal.
Strengths:
As always Sunrisers have filled their squad with a lot of bowling options. They have successfully retained Shikhar Dhawan & Siddarth Kaul in auctions. Both of them formed successful partnerships with David Warner and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in their respective departments in the previous edition. They have a solid top 3 in Shikhar Dhawan, David Warner & Manish Pandey/Kane Williamson who can turn things around on their own.
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With top-class spinners in the form of Rashid Khan and Shakib Al Hasan, their strong spin department looks formidable. They Have Mohammad Nabi and Bipul Sharma to accompany them in the squad.
Weaknesses:
Hyderabad’s middle order looks like their Achilles’ heel. They lack the firepower in the middle order compared to the other teams. Though they have Yusuf Pathan & Carlos Brathwaite, though both of them are highly inconsistent and one can not bank on them all the time.
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They might also miss a quality overseas fast-bowler in the side. They have England’s Chris Jordan and Australia’s Billy Stanlake in the side but since they can only field 4 overseas players, they might miss a quick who can make the job of Bhuvneshwar Kumar little easier.
Opportunities:
Bowlers like Sandeep Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, Basil Thampi and T Natarajan will get an opportunity to make a name for themselves and get into the selector’s scheme of things.
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Especially 27-year Kaul who was in India’s squad for the ODIs during Sri Lanka’s India tour last year but could not make it in the playing XI. Another good IPL season and then the selectors cannot ignore him.
Threats:
Their fragile middle-order might add extra pressure on openers of the Hyderabad’s batting line up. If their top order fails to perform, the opponent bowlers might well become a threat to the side. Likes of Warner may feel extra pressure and may not go all gun blazing in the powerplay overs.
Tags: Chennai Super Kings, CSK, DD, Delhi Daredevils, Indian Premier League, IPL 2018, Kings XI Punjab, KKR, Kolkata Knight Riders, KXIP, MI, Mumbai Indians, Rajasthan Royals, RCB, Royal Challengers Bangalore, RR, SRH, Sunrisers Hyderabad, SWOT Analysis
