While SRH bought him with high expectation, he was nowhere close to his best at any stage.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) didn’t have a great IPL 2025, as they had several underperformers throughout the season. One of them was Mohammed Shami, who joined SRH for INR 10 crores in the IPL 2025 auction.
While SRH bought him with high expectations, Shami, who has been off-colour since his return from surgery, was wayward and nowhere close to his best at any stage. He could only take six wickets at an abysmal 56.16 runs apiece and conceded 11.23 runs per over in nine innings in IPL 2025.
A reliable X (formerly Twitter) account that has been sharing information about rumoured trades and releases confirmed that SRH are planning to release him before the IPL 2026 auction, following his mediocre performances last season. The user sounded confident about the report, suggesting that there might be some truth in the news.
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It won’t be surprising if SRH let Shami go, given that he is costing a significant sum and has been nowhere close to his best since his comeback. The Orange Army can get him back at a lower price because he won’t be as expensive after his recent downfall, but for now, releasing him would be a wise option.
If Sunrisers Hyderabad release him before the IPL 2026 auction, Mumbai Indians (MI) and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) are among the two teams that will go hard after him. MI will want a better option than Deepak Chahar for powerplay bowling, even though Chahar performed well with the new ball in IPL 2025.
Shami can be mighty effective at the Wankhede Stadium, where new-ball bowlers always get some movement early on. MI have the likes of Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult to operate in slog overs, so they can front-load Shami’s overs and extract the most out of him.
Meanwhile, the Kolkata Knight Riders would want alternatives for Vaibhav Arora, who had a mixed IPL 2025. Further, they had Spencer Johnson, who proved ineffective for most of IPL 2025 and might be released ahead of the next edition.
Shami understands KKR’s home venue, Eden Gardens, more than many other bowlers, given that he plays for Bengal domestically. There’s always some assistance for speedsters, especially with the new ball, and Shami can be a threatening weapon for KKR, who have otherwise most bases covered in the bowling department.
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