Follow Us286/6. 190/9. 163 all-out, 120 all-out. After starting off with an absolute bang, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s batting has gotten progressively worse with every game in IPL 2025. And the IPL 2024 finalists brought out their worst performance of the season, yet, against Kolkata Knight Riders, crumbling on a slightly tricky wicket to endure their worst ever IPL defeat.
On the back of the defeat, serious questions are being asked of the ‘ultra-aggressive’ SRH top-order, which has now flopped three games in a row, getting overpowered by the bowlers in the powerplay. But the side’s bowling coach James Franklin backed the batting unit to bounce back, insisting that the team will continue to play the same way.
“Our batters have been lauded for a year and a bit, and rightfully so for the style of play they've played. In just the last couple of games it hasn't quite worked, but we've got no doubts that our top order, our batters, will come good,” Franklin said after the loss against KKR.
“We've got every faith and trust in them coming into this next game that we play against Gujarat on Sunday. So, look, it's just one of those days where it hasn't quite gone according to plan. There's obviously some frustration within the group, but we're still very early days in this IPL, and we've got a lot of quality players within our group that can certainly turn it around.”
There have been calls for SRH to re-think their game plan and tone down their aggression, but Franklin reckoned that it would be incorrect to veer away from the ‘all-out aggression’ style of play, as it’s what has made SRH one of the most feared batting units in the entire world.
“You don't want to take away from the natural intent of our top order and the way that they bat, because, as we've witnessed quite a lot over the last year, it's breathtaking when it's going well,” the bowling coach said.
“Just the last couple of games, it hasn't quite worked. They see the ball, they hit the ball, they know their own game plans and the way that they want to bat.”
Franklin reckoned that a ‘perfect storm’ resulted in KKR blowing away the SRH top-order.
“It's probably a combination of things not quite working for them at the moment and maybe a little bit of that skill that you say with the way that KKR Open bowlers bowled tonight. They took the pace off a little bit straight from the get-go. So yeah, maybe a perfect storm between those two combinations.
“But yeah, I think you'll see as we go through this that our batting group will certainly fire and put some bowling attacks under some real pressure.”
SRH, who are at the very bottom of the IPL 2025 table, will next take on Gujarat Titans in Hyderabad on April 6 (Sunday).