They also need a wicketkeeper – will they try to target Jagadeesan and KS Bharat as well?
Alagappan Muthu18-Dec-2022Who they’ve got
Sunrisers Hyderabad need an overhaul after a season where they were well-placed halfway in, only to run out of steam and finish eighth on the table. They need a new captain, having let Kane Williamson go. They made Nicholas Pooran the most expensive West Indian buy ever at the last IPL auction and let him go as well, meaning they have plenty to work with – and on – this time around.Follow the 2023 IPL auction LIVE
You can watch the auction live in India on Star Sports, and follow live analysis with Tom Moody, Ian Bishop, Wasim Jaffer and Stuart Binny right here on ESPNcricinfo.
Current squad: Abdul Samad, Aiden Markram, Rahul Tripathi, Glenn Phillips, Abhishek Sharma, Marco Jansen, Washington Sundar, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kartik Tyagi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan, Umran MalikWhat they have to play with
They have the most money – INR 42.25 crore (USD 5 million approx.) – to spend at the auction. They have four vacancies for overseas players and a whopping 13 vacancies overall.What they need
A top-order batter who can also be captain (unless they are ready to gamble on Bhuvneshwar Kumar). A wicket-taking wristspinner. A pace-bowling allrounder. A wicketkeeper (They have Glenn Phillips but he is a reluctant gloveman)The likely targets
Ben Stokes: Allrounder. Captaincy candidate (assuming he’s willing to take on that burden). Best used as a top-order batter and a powerplay and middle-overs bowler. Likely to draw bidding wars.Nicholas Pooran: Chances are Sunrisers only put him on the auction table so they could snap him back up for a cheaper price. Best used as a top-order batter, but can offer a point of difference lower down as well. First-choice wicketkeeping option as well. Likely to draw bidding wars. If Sunrisers do get these two left-handers, they may consider pushing Rahul Tripathi up to open to ensure a left-right partnership with Abhishek Sharma.Adil Rashid/Adam Zampa: England and Australia heavily rely on them for control and wickets in the middle overs. Haven’t quite set the IPL alight though. Mumbai Indians are in need of spinners too and will go hard for them.Prerak Mankad: Up-and-coming pace-bowling allrounder from Saurashtra. Won the domestic 50-over title this month. Likely to face competition from Chennai Super Kings and Lucknow Super Giants.N Jagadeesan: Wicketkeeper. Improved batter. Hit 277 in a 50-over game. Likely to face competition from Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders and Gujarat Titans.KS Bharat: Wicketkeeper. Useful anchor-type batter in case the innings starts badly. Likely to face competition from Knight Riders and Titans.Sharukh Dar: Jammu & Kashmir quick following in Umran Malik’s footsteps. Has already had a stint as net bowler with Sunrisers.Ottniel Baartman, who is part of Sunrisers’ team in the SA20, may get a look-in too. Yorker specialist with 44 T20s’ worth of experience. Averages 17.5. Economy rate 6.4.They would probably like an established Indian middle-order hitter too but that lot tend to be retained and rarely end up back in auction. So maybe they’ll bid on overseas picks like Rilee Rossouw or Harry Brook? And, while they already have three other left-arm quicks, they also have the biggest purse, so they could well go for Sam Curran, who will more than likely pay off as a long-term investment.
