“We’re attempting to find a winning combination.” At least in the bowling department, we appear to be getting it. In practically every match, those guys have raised their hands. We simply let them down with the bat.” Sunrisers Hyderabad head coach Brian Lara evaluated the team’s performance in the IPL 2023 thus far. The 2016 champions are second from the bottom of the points rankings with six points after nine games. They have only won one of their last five matches, and their inability to create an impression with the bat has been the main reason for their decline this season.
Even in their most recent encounter, on Thursday (May 4), the Sunrisers finished with 166 in a chase of 172, with Varun Chakaravarthy defending eight in the final over. Early wickets and a lack of partnerships, according to Lara, have hampered the Sunrisers, and he believes that match awareness is essential to complement their goal.
“We’re keeping dropping wickets in the powerplay.” That always comes at a cost. We asked [Heinrich] Klaasen, who has been hitting well for us, to do it all again. He comes in at No. 6, with five powerful men ahead of him. It’s always been a challenge, but it’s never been an uphill one. The batters would understand that it was their responsibility to win the game on such a good batting surface, and we were unable to accomplish so. I really believe we need to place a little more focus on partnerships and match awareness. It’s good to be assertive and determined. However, you will need to use some upstairs to complete the task.
In the chase, the Sunrisers got off to a terrific start, hitting 53 in the powerplay, but they also lost three wickets. A 70-run stand off 47 balls between Klaasen and skipper Aiden Markram resurrected the innings. The withdrawal of the set hitters, along with a superb death spell from Varun CV, culminated in SRH’s sixth defeat.
When asked if the SRH hitters could have performed better against spin, Lara replied, “They are quality spinners, and we’re seeing that as a trend, the spinners are coming into play as the tournament progresses.” We try to make the most of the powerplay and see how much we can get out of it. We actually won the powerplay. We merely lost two wickets, and Narine and Chakaravarthy are both world-class spinners.
“At that point, perhaps understanding what was required.” Markram and Klaasen did put on a decent partnership, and we clawed our way back into the game with a few big overs before losing a couple of wickets at a crucial point in the game. It’s not a vulnerability against spin or anything. I simply assumed we had a game to win. “We have to hold our hands up and say that they didn’t beat us, but we lost the game,” he said.
Meanwhile, Harry Brook was out for a duck for the second time in a succession and hasn’t played much since his century against the Knight Riders a few weeks ago. Lara added that it is Brook’s responsibility to figure out what is wrong with him, and that he and the other members of the coaching staff are always willing to listen and assist him.
“Harry works really hard in the nets. He hits many balls and appears to be in great shape in the nets. He appears to be in good shape when batting and prepping for the game. Harry must determine what is wrong. When needed, I’m always willing to listen and offer suggestions. We also have a batting coach in Hemang. So we have the elements to work with any of the players. If Harry improves, the team will benefit greatly.”
