Sunil Gavaskar believes that Travis Head will be chosen over Aiden Markram for the final overseas spot in SunRisers Hyderabad’s playing XI for the upcoming IPL 2024 season.
Under Aiden Markram’s captaincy, the SunRisers Hyderabad finished at the bottom of the table in IPL 2023. In the auction held last December, they spent ₹30.80 crores to acquire six players, including Pat Cummins (₹20.50 crore), Travis Head (₹6.80 crore), and Wanindu Hasaranga (₹1.50 crore) as their overseas picks.
The fourth overseas slot is going to be a problem for them- Sunil Gavaskar on SRH
During a discussion on Star Sports, when asked about his preferred overseas picks in the SunRisers Hyderabad’s first-choice playing XI, Sunil Gavaskar said,
“(Heinrich) Klaasen, with the form that he has shown, definitely comes in, that’s one. Pat Cummins as the captain, he comes in at No. 2. I think you would want to look at Hasaranga because he will give you those good middle overs, that’s three,”
“The fourth one is going to be the problem for them. Markram was their captain the last time around, or do you pick Travis Head? I would go for Travis Head. I think, Pat Cummins, if he is the captain, he also being an Aussie and having seen more of Travis Head, will go for Travis Head,” the former India captain added.
Gavaskar noted that SunRisers Hyderabad has the flexibility to adjust their playing combination based on the conditions as the IPL 2024 season progresses.
“So I do believe that would probably be the starting lineup. Then as the season progresses, see how the form goes, which opposition you are playing, which pitches you are playing, and then you can form your XI accordingly,” he stated.
Despite Aiden Markram’s underwhelming performance with the bat in IPL 2023, where he scored 248 runs at an average of 22.55 and a strike rate of 125.88 in 13 innings, his successful captaincy for SunRisers Eastern Cape in the SA20 league, leading them to back-to-back titles, could make SunRisers Hyderabad consider retaining him as captain for another season.
He could come in for some pitches like say the pitch in Mumbai- Sunil Gavaskar on Marco Jansen
Sunil Gavaskar suggested that Marco Jansen might not find a place in the SunRisers Hyderabad’s playing XI initially, but he could come into the side depending on the conditions and the team’s requirements during the IPL 2024 season.
“He could come in for some pitches like say the pitch in Mumbai, which has got a little more carry, a pitch in Kolkata, where the ball seams around a little bit, and maybe in Mohali. These are the kind of pitches where he might get a game,”
Marco Jansen took 10 wickets at an economy rate of 9.88 in eight games during IPL 2023. Along with him, SunRisers Hyderabad also have Fazalhaq Farooqi as an overseas left-arm seam-bowling option for the upcoming IPL 2024 season.
Also Read: https://goworldwide.co.in/irfan-pathan-on-rcb-ahead-of-ipl-2024/