There are many stars on the SRH roster, but also few potential gems
On paper, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have the most exciting batting line-up in the world going into the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. Abhishek Sharma is fresh off a blistering 135 off 54 balls against England and is No.2 in the ICC T20I batting rankings. His opening partner Travis Head is in the No.1 spot and is amassing runs at a rapid pace irrespective of the format he is playing. Then they have Heinrich Klaasen, who found his six-hitting groove with two quickfire fifties for Durban Super Giants in the 2025 SA20 after a tepid start.
They also kept Nitish Kumar Reddy who has ascended to the Indian Test and T20I team, making an instant impression. SRH fans have all the right to expect fireworks when the season kicks off, but SRH also have few new players who are doing exceptionally well in the Indian domestic circuit without much attention.
Here’s a list of those domestic players who are in tremendous form.
A legspinner by trade, Ansari played Under 19 cricket with the likes of Rishabh Pant, Sarfaraz Khan and Ishan Kishan. After making his First-Class debut with Uttar Pradesh’s senior team in 2017, Ansari played sparingly for his state side – just five appearances across three seasons.
He hasn’t played national-level cricket since January 2020, but came into limelight after tearing up batting orders for Meerut Mavericks in the Uttar Pradesh T20 League. The 25-year-old claimed 24 wickets from 12 matches at an average of 13.25 at an economy of 7.6. This clearly interested the SRH scouts who prompted the franchise owners to buy Ansari for INR 40 lakh.
Harshal Patel’s performances were decent in the 2024 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) where he picked up 11 wickets from seven games at an average of 16.27. In the Vijay Hazare Trophy where Haryana reached the semifinals, Patel just played their first two group games and claimed one wicket.
The emergence of Anshul Kamboj as an all-format force for Haryana has put Harshal down the pecking order in the 50-over format, but he remains a threat in the T20 format — both a boon and bane of his career.
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Despite his uneven form and injury troubles off late, Patel is still an asset for any IPL side having won the Purple Cap twice, including in IPL 2024. With Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s name not on their roster, the responsibility to lead SRH’s bowling attack will definitely be on Patel.
It feels as if Atharva Taide has been playing as Vidarbha’s opener forever, but he is just 24 and has a long career ahead. Taide has been sparingly used by the team in their superb run into the 2024-25 Vijay Hazare Trophy finals, but he has been a consistent performer in the SMAT 2024 with 189 runs from six innings at a strike rate of 142.
Unfortunately in IPL 2024, he was stuck in a Punjab Kings side that was struggling to execute its strategies while key players were either getting injured or had other commitments. With SRH having two openers in sublime form, Taide can be a good option for any top-order position and an ideal back-up opener.
Simarjeet Singh had one impressive spell with Chennai Super Kings last season claiming five wickets from four games. However, the Delhi pacer’s problem was his inaccuracy which led to him conceding 121 runs from seven overs he bowled in IPL 2024. Simarjeet will be expected to be a new-ball bowler for his new team which is a huge task considering Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s exit.
The right-armer has improved his bowling by a great margin this season in the SMAT 2024. The 27-year-old claimed nine wickets from five games for Delhi at an impressive economy of 7.2 and an average of 14 which is a good sign for SRH going into IPL 2025.
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