3 quality SRH players who might be benched throughout IPL 2024 ft. Glenn Phillips
The SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) have made wholesale changes since finishing dead-last in the 2023 IPL and find themselves as one of the favorites heading into the new campaign.
Having appointed Pat Cummins as their captain, the Orange Army boast an excellent Indian contingent while having eight world-class overseas names to call upon. It's even arguable that Hyderabad have the best roster among all 10 teams in IPL 2024.
Unfortunately, having such a strong squad means that some deserving players will have to be consigned to the bench for most - if not all - of the campaign.
SRH's squad for IPL 2024: Aiden Markram, Abdul Samad, Rahul Tripathi, Glenn Phillips, Heinrich Klaasen, Mayank Agarwal, Anmolpreet Singh, Upendra Yadav, Nitish Reddy, Shahbaz Ahmed, Abhishek Sharma, Marco Jansen, Washington Sundar, Sanvir Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Mayank Markande, Umran Malik, T Natarajan, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Travis Head, Wanindu Hasaranga, Pat Cummins (c), Jaydev Unadkat, Akash Singh, Jhathavedh Subramanyan
Here are three quality SRH players who might be benched throughout IPL 2024:
#3 Anmolpreet Singh
Anmolpreet Singh was one of the stars of Punjab's superb run to the 2023-24 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy title. The aggressive batter tallied 355 runs in nine innings at an average of 44.37 and a strike rate of 180.2, hitting one century and one fifty.
However, IPL appearances might be difficult to come by for Anmolpreet in a star-studded SRH side. Hyderabad have several players who can open the batting, including Travis Head, Mayank Agarwal, Rahul Tripathi, Abhishek Sharma and Aiden Markram.
Even in the middle order, the SunRisers have virtually all places filled. Anmolpreet has done enough to warrant a good run in an IPL team, but SRH might not be able to give him any chances this year despite the fact that he's an occasional wicket-keeper.
#2 Glenn Phillips
Speaking of occasional wicketkeepers, Glenn Phillips has gone from donning the gloves in white-ball cricket to being one of the best utility all-rounders in the shortest format. The explosive Kiwi is a regular in all three formats and has contributed in both departments at the international level recently.
However, as enticing as Phillips might be as a T20 package, SRH just have too much quality in the overseas department to field him. Aiden Markram, last year's captain, is a reliable and versatile batter who can chip in with his off-spin and contribute on the field. He offers a similar skillset to Phillips and has the advantage of having been part of the leadership group before.
Others like Marco Jansen, Wanindu Hasaranga and Heinrich Klaasen are also likely to be ahead of Phillips in the pecking order. There are many teams in the IPL that the New Zealand superstar would start for, but Hyderabad might not be one of them.
#1 Fazalhaq Farooqi
Fazalhaq Farooqi has become a regular in franchise leagues around the world, and it isn't difficult to see why.
The left-arm pacer is deadly with the ball, possessing the ability to swing it both ways while having excellent control. He has also developed into a decent death-overs option, with a reliable slower ball and fairly accurate yorkers.
However, SRH are expected to be dependent on their domestic fast bowlers in IPL 2024, as they often are. If they call upon overseas options to support Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan, Umran Malik, and Akash Singh, it will likely be Jansen alongside captain Cummins.
Farooqi is probably last in the pecking order among SRH's overseas contingent, and that invariably means that games will be difficult to come by.