IPL 2020: SWOT Analysis of Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH)

Threats

Problem of plenty with Indian pacers

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, Sandeep Sharma, Basil Thampi, T Natarajan, Siddarth Kaul and Vijay Shankar – SRH simply have far too many Indian pacers.

Among these players, only Shankar and Bhuvneshwar are assured spots in the playing XI, and the others will have to fight it out among themselves. Without a settled bowling combination, Warner will have a selection headache on his hands in IPL 2020.

A poor game or two could completely break one of these players’ IPL 2020 hopes, and SRH will have to be very careful with the opportunities they give and the team-rotations they decide to enforce.

Pressure on young Indian players

In such an inexperienced middle-order and with a stacked bowling attack, the Indian players will be under immense pressure to deliver and support the overseas contingent.

This isn’t an ideal situation for anyone involved, as they’ll thrown right into the deep end and be expected to perform right from the outset. However, it could result in some players truly upping their game, which is why this is classified as a threat and not as a weakness.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s fitness

With Bhuvneshwar being the leader of the pace attack, he will be under immense pressure already. Add to that the fact that he is coming back from a series of injuries.

The right-arm pacer might not be rested even if he needs it, and given the circumstances that IPL 2020 is taking place in, he is at high risk of injury.

The 30-year-old is arguably SRH’s most important bowler, both with the new ball and at the death, and his fitness (and form) could be the defining factor in the team’s season. If Bhuvneshwar is not able to shine, SRH will be in a load of trouble.

~Written by Diyali Chauhan