“Have you seen his recent IPL numbers?’ – Aakash Chopra slams SRH over captaincy change before IPL 2024

Aakash Chopra has voiced doubts regarding Sunrisers Hyderabad’s decision to appoint Pat Cummins as captain for IPL 2024. The franchise acquired Cummins for a significant sum of 20.50 crore during last year’s auction in Dubai. Chopra emphasized Cummins’ lackluster track record in the IPL, citing his subpar performances with both the new ball and during death overs, as well as his questionable effectiveness in the T20 format.

The former Indian cricketer pointed out that despite being the captain of the 2023 World Cup-winning team, Cummins does not guarantee a spot in the playing XI and does not lead Australia in T20Is. He suggested that Cummins’ appointment as skipper of Sunrisers Hyderabad could be attributed to recent events, particularly his pivotal role in the ODI World Cup final against India. With Daniel Vettori serving as SRH head coach, Cummins might have garnered favor, Chopra suggested. He hinted at the presence of recency bias in Cummins’ selection as captain, despite uncertainties regarding his suitability for T20 cricket.

Aakash Chopra said“You have made Pat Cummins the captain but have you seen his recent IPL numbers? Check attentively, he concedes a lot of runs and doesn’t score that many runs with the bat. Only four overseas players play. He neither bowls in the powerplay nor at the death.”

“If he is not going to do all those jobs, you are spending 25% of your overseas resources on a player whose place in the XI was not 100% guaranteed in the IPL. That is why Pat Cummins is not the captain of the team where 11 Australians play, although he has won the World Cup, but not T20,” added the commentator