The Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) stirred everyone with their high-voltage cricket at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. The opening duo of Abhishek Sharma and Travis Head went bonkers to score runs faster than the speed of a bullet train. The leader, Pat Cummins, instilled a fabulous amount of self-confidence in the Orange Army, a team that also looked to score 300 in a couple of games.
But SRH might have some bad news. Cummins may miss some part of the upcoming IPL 2025 season. The Australian maestro missed the entire ICC Men’s Champions Trophy 2025. Moreover, he missed the multi-format tour to Sri Lanka as well after a hectic Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT). Cummins had ankle issues and thus missed the majority of action in 2025. There are question marks over his participation in the initial part of the IPL 2025.
Abhishek Sharma best option as SRH captain?
In case Cummins misses out, who would be the best option to captain Hyderabad? The best possible bet is Abhishek Sharma. Yes, he is not renowned for astuteness or shrewd strategies, but the southpaw has a learning curve ahead of him. For those unaware, Abhishek has led his state team, Punjab, across all three formats. The world number two T20I batter has taken the international cricket by a storm, having racked up 365 runs at an average of 52.14 and at an enormous strike rate of 214.70 in his last seven games.
Captaincy record of Abhishek Sharma in T20s
| Mat | Won | Lost | Tied | Draw | %W | %L | %Tied |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 10 | 6 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 60.00 | 30.00 | 10.00 |
You see, barring SRH, every team’s captain is an Indian. That is to boost the local players and it doesn’t affect the overseas quota as well. Thus, giving an advantage to Abhishek, who will learn a lot via captaincy (obviously if given a chance). As for him, the 24-year-old has also led to 6 wins in 8 List-A matches and two wins in four first-class clashes.
But what about Heinrich Klaasen?
There’s another option in Heinrich Klaasen, also one of the best middle-order T20 batters on the world stage. He could be a better option than Abhishek especially because of his seniority and vast experience. Klaasen has previously led in the international setup as well, having captained South Africa in 9 T20Is.
Especially, Klaasen has been in incredible form too. In his last 7 games, he has mustered 426 runs at an incredible average of 71.00 and at a SR of 126.03. This run included five consecutive fifties as well.
Klaasen got Aakash Chopra’s backing as well. The former-cricketer-turned-commentator divulged on Sunrisers Hyderabad’s captaincy options if Pat Cummins isn’t available.
“What’s the scene with Pat Cummins’ injury? He missed the Champions Trophy just now. Will he be available for the entire season? If he isn’t available, there could be a slight leadership void. Who will you suddenly make the captain?” Aakash Chopra told on his YouTube channel.
“There is no big Indian name here. I think Heinrich Klaasen has captaincy aspirations, so you could make him the captain, but you will miss Pat Cummins, is what I am thinking,” Chopra noted.
SRH nailed down their confidence on Klaasen when they retained the Protea star for a whopping Rs 23.00 crore. Chopra claimed that Klaasen also has captaincy aspirations as well, making him a viable contendor.
SRH squad for IPL 2025
Ishan Kishan (wk), Harshal Patel, Rahul Chahar, Mohammed Shami, Adam Zampa ✈️, Atharva Taide, Abhinav Manohar, Simarjeet Singh, Zeeshan Ansari, Jaydev Unadkat, Wiaan Mulder ✈️, Kamindu Mendis✈️, Sachin Baby, Aniket Verma, Eshan Malinga ✈️, Heinrich Klaasen (wk)✈️, Pat Cummins (c)✈️, Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head ✈️, Nitish Kumar Reddy
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