3 players who were at their peak while representing Sunrisers Hyderabad in IPL
The Sunrisers Hyderabad joined the Indian Premier League (IPL) in 2013 after replacing the Deccan Chargers in the tournament. In the mini auction that preceded the 2013 season, the organizers allowed SRH to obtain players from the Deccan squad.
The Sunrisers Hyderabad bought their current IPL captain David Warner at the mega IPL auction that took place in 2014. The Australian opener had plied his trade with Delhi before becoming a massive match-winner in Hyderabad, for whom he has won three IPL Orange Caps. Warner also led the team to the championship in 2016.
Many players have brought their 'A' game to the table while donning the orange jersey in the IPL. The fact that Sunrisers Hyderabad have qualified for the playoffs six times in seven seasons proves this fact.
Along with Warner, there have been several players whose career graphs have gone up since joining Sunrisers Hyderabad. Here are three players who were at their peak when playing for SRH.
3. Bipul Sharma
All-rounder Bipul Sharma played for two franchises in the IPL. He represented the Punjab Kings from 2010 to 2013 before switching to the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Bipul had won the 2016 IPL season with the Orange Army. The all-rounder played 18 matches for Hyderabad, scoring 83 runs at a strike rate of 162.75. His strike rate was less than 145 during the four seasons he played for Punjab.
With the ball, Bipul Sharma scalped nine wickets for the Sunrisers Hyderabad at an economy rate of 8.04. His economy and bowling strike rate were marginally higher when he represented Punjab.
Most importantly, he proved himself as a big-match player for SRH by picking up AB de Villiers' wicket in the IPL 2016 Final. Also, Bipul had contributed a vital 11-ball 27* to help SRH beat the Gujarat Lions in the 2nd Qualifier.
2. Daren Sammy
Daren Sammy represented a total of three franchises in his IPL career. He started with the Sunrisers Hyderabad, the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Punjab Kings.
Sammy's best performances came when he donned the SRH jersey in IPL 2013 and 2014. The Caribbean all-rounder aggregated 282 runs at a strike rate of 126.86 for the Orange Army. His strike rate went down to 72.22, while his batting average dipped to 6.50 when he played for the Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Sammy scalped 11 wickets, including a four-wicket haul for Hyderabad. He bowled only three overs for the RCB, returning with no wickets. Punjab Kings never played him.
1. Thisara Perera was a game-changer for the Sunrisers Hyderabad in their first season
The Sunrisers Hyderabad sneaked into the IPL 2013 playoffs courtesy some close victories in low-scoring encounters.
Sri Lankan all-rounder Thisara Perera was the backbone of the squad that year. Perera aggregated 233 runs in 16 matches at a strike rate of 142.94, while he also picked up 19 wickets with the ball.
Thisara played for five other teams, and scored only 422 runs in total. This clearly proves that Perera was at his peak when he donned the Hyderabad jersey. The Sri Lankan star has 31 IPL wickets to his name, and 19 of them came in the 2013 season for SRH.