Former India batter Cheteshwar Pujara said that Sunrisers Hyderabad need to address their struggles in away matches despite having one of the most destructive batting line-ups, as they are all set to play in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, which will begin on March 28.
“SRH are a very destructive side and score a lot of runs when they play at home in Hyderabad. But away from home, their record is very poor. When they play away matches, they fail to maintain their destructive batting intent,” Pujara told Jio Hotstar.
“That is because all the teams know that SRH rely on their batting power to set big totals. Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, and Heinrich Klaasen are their main batters. Once they get dismissed, SRH struggles to get going. That is where the opposition teams take advantage and prevent them from putting up big totals. That is something they will have to work on,” he added.
At the same time, Cheteshwar Pujara also applauded the opening duo of Abhishek Sharma and Head, stating them one of the most destructive pairs the league has seen.
“No bowler wants to run in and bowl against an opening pair like Abhishek and Head” – Cheteshwar Pujara
“In the last couple of seasons, what we have seen from the openers of Sunrisers Hyderabad, Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head, I can certainly say they are one of the most destructive opening pairs in IPL history. Both are batters who know how to attack from ball one,” he said.
“SRH has consistently crossed the 250-run mark in the last couple of seasons thanks to them. No other team in the IPL has done that consistently. That is only because of the two openers. Smashing the ball all over the park and doing it regularly is what makes them special. When we talk about aggressive opening pairs in the IPL, the pair of Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli comes to mind. But this duo of Head and Abhishek is even more destructive. No bowler wants to run in and bowl against an opening pair like Abhishek and Head,” he concluded.
However, SRH had a poor campaign in the last season, where they won only six games out of the 14 matches they played. They finished in 6th position as well.
Get the latest cricket news here, like us on Facebook, and follow us on Twitter and Instagram for more such updates.
