The Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), owned by the Sun Group, find themselves at the bottom of the IPL 2025 standings. It’s hard to believe that this is the same team that made it to the IPL 2024 final. SRH was expected to be the first to cross the 300-run mark this season.
The question on everyone’s mind now is what went wrong with Kavya Maran's (CEO of Sunrisers Hyderabad and daughter of Sun Group chief Kalanithi Maran) 'Baahubali Army'. The team that staged miracles in the first match has suddenly lost its spark.
In the IPL 2025 match on March 23, Sunrisers clashed with Rajasthan Royals on their home ground. After losing the toss, they batted first, scoring 286 runs for 6 wickets. At one point, it seemed they would break the 300-run barrier, but it did not happen.
Abhishek Sharma made a quick 24 runs off 11 balls. Ishan Kishan joined the field in his SRH debut and put up an 85-run partnership with Travis Head in just 38 balls. Travis Head batted superbly, scoring 67 in 31 balls. Ishan received crucial support from Nitish Kumar Reddy (30 runs) and Heinrich Klaasen (34 runs off 14 balls). Playing his first match for Sunrisers, Ishan completed his century in 45 balls, staying unbeaten with a magnificent 106 off 46 balls.
Their performance in this match made it seem that SRH was back to its formidable self from IPL 2024, where they flustered many teams with their batting prowess. It felt as if Ishan Kishan's addition had strengthened them. But subsequently, the team couldn’t maintain its form.
Source: aajtak
Why hasn’t Hyderabad performed like last season? Their key batsmen’s performances are one reason. Also, the bowling hasn’t been impressive. Players like Heinrich Klaasen (23 crore), Pat Cummins (18 crore), Travis Head (14 crore), Abhishek Sharma (14 crore), and Nitish Kumar Reddy (6 crore) retained by Hyderabad, have been underwhelming.
Performance of SRH's Top 5 Batters
1.
Travis Head:
Leading run-scorer for SRH with 140 runs in four matches, including a 67 against Rajasthan, followed by 47 against Lucknow. But against Delhi and Kolkata, he managed only 22 and 4 runs, respectively.
2.
Abhishek Sharma:
A dismal performance with just 33 runs in four matches, his highest being 24 against Rajasthan.
3.
Heinrich Klaasen:
Retained for a hefty sum by SRH, Klaasen scored 125 runs in 4 matches, failing to win any on his own merit.
Source: aajtak
4.
Ishan Kishan:
Despite his century in the first match, Kishan has contributed merely 110 runs in four matches.
5.
Nitish Reddy:
An all-rounder who showed glimpses of potential, Reddy has scored just 81 runs at an average of 20.25 across four games.
SRH's Bowling Woes
Main bowlers Pat Cummins and Mohammad Shami have not performed up to expectations. Shami took three wickets with an economy rate of 10, and Cummins, with an economy of 12.3, also claimed just three wickets. Harshal Patel took four wickets in four matches. None makes it to the IPL 2025 top 10 bowlers list—another reason for their low ranking.
SRH's IPL 2025 Performance So Far
Apart from their first match, SRH’s performance has been lacking. With four matches played, they've won one and lost three, currently sitting last in the standings with 2 points and a net run rate of -1.612.
Hyderabad’s Downfall After the First Match
After a resounding win against Rajasthan, Hyderabad struggled against Lucknow Super Giants, suffering a 5-wicket loss. Despite setting a target of 191 runs, Lucknow chased it down in 16.1 overs, thanks to Nicholas Pooran's 70 off 26 balls.
Third Match: Mitchell Starc Strikes
In their third encounter against Delhi Capitals on March 30 in Visakhapatnam, SRH lost by seven wickets. Mitchell Starc played a key role with five wickets as Delhi chased Hyderabad’s target of 164 with ease in 16 overs, led by Faf du Plessis’s quick half-century.
Fourth Match: KKR Defeats SRH
Against Kolkata Knight Riders, SRH faced an 80-run defeat. Kolkata scored 200/6, with vital contributions from Venkatesh Iyer (60 off 29 balls) and Angkrish Raghuvanshi (50 off 32 balls). Kolkata’s captain Ajinkya Rahane added 38 while Rinku Singh finished unbeaten on 32. In reply, barring Heinrich Klaasen's 33 and Kamindu Mendis’s 27, other batters faltered. Vaibhav Arora’s dismissals of Travis Head (4), Abhishek Sharma (2), and Ishan Kishan (2) set the tone as SRH struggled. When Heinrich Klaasen fell at 112/7, SRH's chances were nearly extinguished.
