Despite having an explosive line-up, SRH have several issues to deal with before IPL 2026 which could potentially impact their performances. To start with, their opening combo of ‘Travishek’ aren’t in good form. Then, they have a lack of experienced spinners in their unit. To add to that, they don’t have Mohammed Shami anymore, which means they are one bowler short of who can deliver in the powerplay. Ahead of IPL 2026, let’s take a look at 3 weaknesses of SRH.
3 Weaknesses in SRH camp
Inexperienced spin department
One of the key concerns for SRH ahead of IPL 2026 is their inexperienced spin department. While SRH possess one of the most explosive batting lineups in the tournament, their spin bowling resources lack the same level of proven match-winning experience. In a league where controlling the middle overs is often crucial, SRH are expected to rely on relatively young or less-established spinners to handle the middle overs.
Players such as Kamindu Mendis will carry significant responsibility in the spin department, but beyond him, players like Zeeshan Ansari lack experience.
Over-reliance on aggressive top-order batting lineup
Another potential weakness for SRH is their over-reliance on an aggressive top-order batting lineup. While SRH possess one of the most explosive opening combinations in the tournament, the team’s batting strategy heavily depends on their top-order delivering quick starts. Players such as Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma are known for their attacking style, proven that they have scored 374 and 439 runs respectively in IPL 2025, but if both openers are dismissed early, the pressure quickly shifts to the middle order.
Although the SRH middle order features impactful players like Heinrich Klaasen and Liam Livingstone, they may often be forced into rebuilding situations instead of playing their natural attacking game. This can slow down the scoring rate and disrupt the team’s aggressive strategy.
Lack of a proven powerplay strike bowler, except Pat Cummins
Another major concern for the Hyderabad-based franchise remains the lack of a proven powerplay strike bowler, apart from Pat Cummins. In T20 cricket where picking up early wickets in the first six overs is crucial to disrupt the opposition’s momentum, SRH’s bowling attack appears to rely heavily on Cummins. This could allow rival teams to get off to strong starts, especially on batting-friendly IPL pitches. As for Cummins, even he is usnure right now considering he missed four Ashes Test and the entire T20 World Cup due to his injury.
SRH IPL 2026 squad
Batters: Ishan Kishan, Aniket Verma, Smaran Ravichandran, Salil Arora, Heinrich Klaasen, Travis Head
All-rounders: Harshal Patel, Kamindu Mendis, Harsh Dubey, Brydon Carse, Shivang Kumar, Krain Fuletra, Liam Livingstone, Jack Edwards, Abhishek Sharma, Nitish Kumar Reddy
Bowlers: Pat Cummins, Zeeshan Ansari, Jaydev Unadkat, Eshan Malinga, Sakib Hussain, Onkar Tarmale, Amit Kumar, Praful Hinge, Shivam Mavi
