Rating SRH’s squad after IPL 2025 auction: 8/10 for failing to buy domestic all-rounders & quality spinner

The Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) exhausted all but Rs 20 lakh at the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 mega auction. Despite sparing no money, they have ended up with 20 players (5 short of the maximum limit). They have five slots left, one of which belongs to an overseas player. The reason for the player shortage is that SRH has decided to pay their retentions a whopping Rs 75 crore. Despite a minimum of 15 slots to fill, they decided to go all out on a few players. These picks ranged from Rs 11.25 crore to 30 lakh. 

The price tags don’t really account for anything. At the end of the day, it’ll be what each player adds to their squad. SRH had rolled out an absolute belter at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium last season to ensure they maximise their strong batting line-up. But not all matches are played at home. Therefore, one must see where they’ll stand when playing at different venues and not just build a team dependent on home advantage. 

IPL 2025 auction: SRH’s picks

Ishan Kishan (Rs 11.25 crore), Harshal Patel (Rs 8 crore), Rahul Chahar (Rs 3.20 crore), Mohammed Shami (Rs 10 crore), Adam Zampa ✈️(Rs 2.40 crore), Atharva Taide (Rs 3.40 crore), Abhinav Manohar (Rs 3.20 crore), Simarjeet Singh (Rs 1.50 crore), Zeeshan Ansari (Rs 40 lakh), Jaydev Unadkat (Rs 1 crore), Brydon Carse ✈️(Rs 1 crore), Kamindu Mendis✈️(Rs 75 lakh), Sachin Baby (Rs 30 lakh), Aniket Verma (Rs 30 lakh), Ehsan Malinga ✈️(Rs 2.40 crore)

SRH retained players list

Heinrich Klaasen ✈️(Rs 23 crore), Pat Cummins ✈️(Rs 18 crore), Abhishek Sharma (Rs 14 crore), Travis Head ✈️(Rs 13 crore), Nitish Kumar Reddy (Rs 6 crore)

SRH’s strongest playing XI for IPL 2025

• Abhishek Sharma
• Travis Head ✈️
• Ishan Kishan
• Nitish Kumar Reddy
• Atharva Taide
• Heinrich Klaasen (wk) ✈️
• Abhinav Manohar
• Rahul Chahar
• Pat Cummins✈️
• Simarjeet Singh/Harshal Patel
• Mohammed Shami

Impact Player: Kamindu Mendis/Adam Zampa ✈️

Hits at IPL 2025 auction

SRH’s retentions had ensured they had four of the top five settled. So the inclusion of Ishan Kishan, Atharva Taide, and Abhinav Manohar looks good. Taide’s a 24-year-old southpaw with a huge upside. He’s done well in the limited opportunities he’s gotten and is ready to explode in the IPL. Manohar’s on the other end of this conversation. He’s 30 and experienced. He was slightly underutilised at the Gujarat Titans, and a franchise change would give him the required game time he needs to show what he’s capable of down the order. Not much needs to be said about Kishan; he’s a high-quality top-order batter who can keep. SRH have done extremely well to get him for Rs 11.25 crore. 

To get Mohammed Shami, Harshal Patel, and Simarjeet Singh for Rs 19.50 crore is a good effort. Simarjeet has much to prove, but he can consistently hit 140s and has good control. Harshal can be expensive but will get you wickets. The same sort of goes for Shami, but he’s much more versatile. It’s yet to be seen whether he’ll be fit enough, but the Indian pace is settled. Rahul Chahar and Kamindu Mendis are good additions for under Rs 4 crore, especially considering how Kamindu can bowl with both his hands and is no mug with the bat. 

Misses at IPL 2025 auction

No slight at Manohar, but players like Ashutosh Sharma, Nitish Rana, or Nehal Wadhera could have been better. Nitish especially has a proven track record. Manohar was bought for Rs 3.20 crore, and there wasn’t much price difference between him and other potential replacements mentioned.

The spin department looks slightly weak. By going after Shahbaz Ahmed or Washington Sundar, whose final price was Rs 2.40 and 3.20 crore. It would have surely been better than going for Adam Zampa, who’s an overseas player. Both Washington and Shahbaz are proper all-rounders as well. 

Instead of going for Brydon Carse or Jaydev Unadkat, SRH could have also invested in another pace-bowling all-rounder who can hit the long ball in Rajvardhan Hangargekar and Arshin Kulkarni. Priced at Rs 30 lakh each, this would have freed some of the cash they needed for big players.