IPL 2018: 3 reasons why Alex Hales will not be an ideal replacement for David Warner

#3 Better options were available

Luke Ronchi has been in fine form

The Sunrisers had quite a lot of players to choose from for the opening slot after the news of Warner's ban broke. Luke Ronchi, Shaun Marsh, Lendl Simmons, Hashim Amla and Martin Guptill are some of the names that spring to mind.

Ronchi has done fairly well in the past few seasons of T20 cricket, strengthening his credential as a hard-hitting opener. He also recently guided Islamabad United to glory with an average of 43.50 and a whopping strike rate of 182 in the PSL. He also picked up a number of Man of the Match awards along the way. He would have been a perfect fit along with Shikhar Dhawan to open the innings for Sunrisers Hyderabad.

Another player in the mix was Amla. Amla scored two centuries in the previous edition of the IPL for Kings XI Punjab and has the experience of playing in India in all forms of the game.

For Sunrisers Hyderabad, the loss of Warner has hit them hard. They have lost a quick scoring opener and an experienced captain. While they have found an able skipper in Kane Williamson, the dilemma now will be managing the overseas slots. It remains to be seen if Hales can edge out competition from the other overseas players and end up opening the innings with Shikhar Dhawan.