3 surprising tactics we could see from the Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2019

Sunrisers Hyderabad made their IPL debut in 2013 replacing the now-defunct Deccan Chargers. Nicknamed the Orange Army, Sunrisers Hyderabad have always punched above their weight by using surprising tactics in IPL's history.

SRH have never believed in the ideology of buying star-studded players in the auction, but instead nurturing players to make the fullest use of their potential. Hyderabad had bought a relatively unknown Afghan duo of Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi in 2017 and currently; they are two of the finest spin-bowling all-rounders in the game.

Last year, Sunrisers Hyderabad used the then uncapped Siddarth Kaul as an opening bowler and also bowled him in the death overs, and in the next 2 months, he made his T20I debut for India.

Though these tactics seemed surprising at first, they paid off rich dividends. So, given their track record, here are the 3 surprising tactics we could see from the Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2019:

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#3 Abhishek Sharma gets a place in the team ahead of the experienced stars

Sunrisers Hyderabad signed Abhishek Sharma in the IPL trade window

Sunrisers Hyderabad has got a superb mix of all-rounders in their squad this season. They have got IPL veterans like Yusuf Pathan, Deepak Hooda, Shakib Al Hasan and Vijay Shankar in the team.

Apart from the seasoned pros, the Sunrisers Hyderabad have also signed a young all-rounder named Abhishek Sharma in the IPL trade. If you do not know who is Abhishek Sharma, let me recall you that this youngster played a fearless knock of 46*(19) for the Delhi franchise last year against the Royal Challengers Bangalore.

He took the team’s total from 120/4 to 181/4 batting with Vijay Shankar (21* off 20 balls) in the final 5 overs. Sharma brutalized the RCB bowlers with 3 fours and 4 sixes. And though Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers’ match-winning partnership overshadowed the young lad’s knock, Abhishek earned everyone’s praise for his fearless approach.

Thus, SRH may spring a surprise by choosing him ahead of the aforementioned names in the playing XI.

#2 Billy Stanlake as the team's 4th foreign player

Billy Stanlake impressed for Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL 2018

Every IPL franchise is allowed to include a maximum of 4 overseas players in their playing XI. For Sunrisers Hyderabad, David Warner, Kane Williamson and Rashid Khan will occupy the first 3 slots in all the matches they play.

The final slot will be a toss-up between Jonny Bairstow, Martin Guptill, Mohammad Nabi, Shakib Al Hasan and Billy Stanlake.

While Shakib Al Hasan has a ton of IPL experience and should walk in the playing XI, the Bangladeshi all-rounder is nursing an injury, so he may not play in the initial stages of IPL.

Given that the Sunrisers have a lot of talented Indian batsman, they might opt to include Billy Stanlake in their team. Stanlake had impressed with his raw pace last year and he might not even make it to the Australian World Cup squad, which will make him available for the entire season (a bonus for the team).

#1 Rashid Khan opens the innings as a pinch-hitter

Rashid Khan had grown as a batsman in 2018

Rashid Khan, the mystery spinner from Afghanistan has been the cornerstone of Sunrisers Hyderabad bowling attack since joining the franchise.

However, last year he played a terrific knock in the qualifier 2 against Kolkata Knight Riders, unleashing his batting abilities. Rashid Khan’s 34*(10) helped Sunrisers garner momentum in the match and they progressed to the final thanks to Rashid’s heroics.

Shikhar Dhawan, the team’s top opener left Sunrisers ahead of the 2019 season. Thus, the chances we might see Rashid Khan opening the innings with David Warner are high.

The trend of using pinch-hitters has grown day by day and, we recently saw Umesh Yadav open the innings for Vidarbha in the Syed Mushtaq Ali trophy. Thus, Sunrisers may surprise us by using Rashid Khan to open the innings.