"Will Aiden Markram play?" - Aakash Chopra on SunRisers Hyderabad's IPL 2024 clash vs Mumbai Indians

Aakash Chopra reckons former SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) skipper Aiden Markram needs to make more significant contributions to retain his place in the franchise's playing XI.

SRH will face the Mumbai Indians (MI) in an IPL 2024 clash in Hyderabad on Wednesday, March 27. The middle-order batter scored 18 runs off 13 deliveries in SRH's four-run loss in their tournament opener against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR).

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra chose Markram as the first SunRisers Hyderabad player to watch out for in Wednesday's game.

"Who are the three Hyderabad players I will be focussing on? Heinrich Klaasen has already done very well. So I am trying to go elsewhere. Will Aiden Markram play? It will be a major focus point for me because Travis Head is already in their minds," he reasoned (5:40).

The former India opener feels the South African batter is being preferred over Travis Head to accommodate Mayank Agarwal, Abhishek Sharma and Rahul Tripathi in the top order.

"They will be longing to play him (Head) but as soon as they play him, Mayank Agarwal, Abhishek Sharma and Rahul Tripathi won't be able to play as the top three. Markram's days are numbered, so there will be a lot of focus in this match on how he fares," Chopra stated.

Chopra added that Markram can be found wanting against left-arm and leg-spinners. He expects MI to bowl Shams Mulani and Piyush Chawla against the right-handed batter.

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"When you spend ₹20.50 crore, you expect him to bowl the difficult overs" - Aakash Chopra on SunRisers Hyderabad captain Pat Cummins

Pat Cummins registered figures of 1/32 in four overs against KKR. [P/C: iplt20.com]

Aakash Chopra picked SunRisers Hyderabad skipper Pat Cummins as their second player in focus.

"My second player is Pat Cummins. He was very expensive (at the auction). Is he bowling the difficult overs himself? So Pat Cummins the bowler - he captained well but when you spend ₹20.50 crore, you expect him to bowl the difficult overs, like the sixth over in the powerplay when the wickets are not falling," he explained (6:30).

The reputed commentator is also eager to see how Bhuvneshwar Kumar fares with the old ball.

"The third player I am looking towards is Bhuvneshwar Kumar, not with the new ball but with the old ball. Something is going wrong with the 19th over and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. He concedes a lot of runs. Andre Russell went after him in the last match. So I am very curious to see how Bhuvneshwar Kumar bowls," Chopra elaborated.

Bhuvneshwar went wicketless and conceded 51 runs in four overs against the Kolkata Knight Riders. The SunRisers Hyderabad swing bowler gave away 26 runs in the penultimate over, with Andre Russell smashing him for two sixes and as many fours.