"You Don't Win The IPL With...": Ex-India Star's Blunt Warning To Sunrisers Hyderabad

Former India batter Ambati Rayudu believes the reason for Sunrisers Hyderabad's struggle doesn't stem from their flop batting shows but from their bowling woes in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. He made the comments on ESPNCricinfo's TimeOut show Sunrisers Hyderabad, who stormed into last season's final, have struggled to find their groove in the 18th edition of the cash-rich league. The Sunrisers fell to their fourth successive defeat in IPL 2025, with their latest one against the Gujarat Titans in their home den.

After folding their innings on a sub-par 152/8, Mohammed Shami and skipper Pat Cummins rattled GT's top order, but the rest of the bowling unit failed to keep the pressure up in the middle overs. Titans skipper Shubman Gill, who brushed away the early threat, stayed unbeaten on 62 to steer his side to a comfortable seven-wicket triumph.

Rayudu traced down the reason behind the ongoing woes behind the Sunrisers' recent downfall and pointed out their lacklustre display with the ball, especially in the middle overs. SRH have taken 12 wickets from 7 to 16 overs, averaging 41.33 and maintaining an economy of 9.92, making them the third-worst among the ten teams.

"In the middle overs, they don't have anybody who can pick up those crucial wickets and put the opposition under pressure - like how GT have done with Sai Kishore, Rashid [Khan] and Prasidh Krishna. They really tightened the screws," Rayudu said on ESPNCricinfo's TimeOut show.

"I don't see SRH trying to take wickets. They are just about being defensive and trying to stop batsmen from scoring boundaries. You don't win the IPL with mediocre middle-overs bowling. You need some really good middle-overs bowlers to pick up those wickets," he added.