Sunrisers Hyderabad’s captain Pat Cummins, right, and Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Nitish Kumar Reddy, third right, congratulates Gujarat Titans players after Gujarat Titans won against them during the Indian Premier League cricket match at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, India, Friday, May 2, 2025.
| Photo Credit: AP

Assessing Sunrisers Hyderabad’s lacklustre bowling overall in the ongoing IPL season so far, Jaydev Unadkat on Friday (May 2, 20225) said that the team has lacked consistent contributions from multiple bowlers in each game. He added that the team has struggled with bowling partnerships and execution.

On Friday, Jos Buttler and Shubman Gill hit half-centuries to power Gujarat Titans to a 38-run victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL.

“From my experience of playing in the IPL for all these years, for a team to do well, there have to be at least three or four bowlers who have to contribute in every game. And probably this year, I would say that we are lacking that.

“When two guys are bowling well, the other three are probably not really bowling in tandem. Like we look at partnerships in terms of batting, I think it’s the same in bowling as well. When you’re not bowling well from both ends, it creates unnecessary pressure on the other guy. And then the plans also change. So, somehow, that hasn’t really clicked for us. We have to take the blame for not being the best bowling side in the tournament.

“I can’t say that there is anything that we lack in terms of training and planning. It’s just the execution out there on the field, which can go wrong at times,” he said at the post-match press conference after his team’s 38-run loss to Gujarat Titans here.

Speaking about the amazingly consistent top-three of the GT batting line-up, Gerald Coetzee said: “I think they’re just playing good cricket shots. There’s not much slogging going on. Maybe it’s not as flashy, but it does the job perfectly.”

Gujarat Titans Sai Sudharsan in action during the IPL 2025 match against Sunrisers Hyderabad at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, on May 2, 2025.
| Photo Credit: Vijay Soneji

Gujarat Titans opener B. Sai Sudharsan continued his red-hot form in the Indian Premier League to lead the Orange Cap race for IPL’s top scorer and stake his claim for a test debut in India’s tour of England later this year.

The left-handed batter smashed 48 off 23 balls and forged an 87-run opening stand with skipper Shubman Gill (76) to set up Gujarat’s 38-run victory against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday.

Sai Sudharsan — the perfect sync between consistency and authority

Gujarat rose to number two in the points table while ninth-placed Hyderabad are now tottering on the brink of elimination in the 10-team league.

Number three Jos Buttler struck 64 to make sure Gujarat’s top three remain among the season’s four leading run scorers.

“Sudharsan has a great head on his shoulders,” former England captain Buttler gushed about his Gujarat teammate, whose 504 runs from 10 matches is the highest this season.

“Blown away by how good he is. He puts in the work, understands his game well. He’s shown great consistency and is getting the rewards he deserves.”

‘Class batters’: Cummins

Hyderabad captain Pat Cummins said he was impressed by how Gill and Sudharsan accumulated quick runs playing traditional cricket shots.

“They’re class batters in GT,” Cummins said. “They don’t do anything outlandish.”

Want to see him in England Test series, says Shastri

Sudharsan played for Surrey in the County Championship in 2023 and 2024 and former India coach Ravi Shastri would like to see the 23-year-old in the five-Test series in England beginning in Headingley on June 20.

“I see this young man, Sai Sudharsan, for all formats of the game,” Shastri told the International Cricket Council.

“He seems like a class player and my eyes would be on him certainly.

“Being a left-hander in England, knowing English conditions, and just his technique – I think he’ll be top of the list for me from the outsiders wanting to get into this side.”