IPL 2019 | VVS Laxman still has his total faith in SRH middle order

IPL 2019 | VVS Laxman still has his total faith in SRH middle order

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VVS Laxman, the Sunrisers Hyderabad mentor, has backed his side’s middle order to come strong in the upcoming matches despite their failure against Mumbai Indians on Saturday. He explained that a single over can make a huge difference in low scoring encounter, justifying his team’s loss.

Sunrisers Hyderabad played Delhi Capitals on a slow Feroz Shah Kotla pitch on April 4, and the Capitals claimed that the Hyderabad based team won’t find it easy, coming from a flat Hyderabad track. But the SRH braved the conditions to hand the home team a defeat by five wickets. They next faced Mumbai Indians in a home match but were dismissed for 96 chasing a target of 137 on a track which behaved differently. MI were sluggish throughout their innings too, but a blitzkrieg of 37 runs in the last two over by Kieron Pollard made the difference.

The middle order of the 2016 Indian Premier League champions was untested, as the opening pair of Jonny Bairstow and David Warner played deep into the innings in all the matches until the one against Mumbai Indians. Thereby, after the failure of the openers, the middle order gave in. VVS Laxman, the SRH mentor, explained that the death overs made the difference, and did not fail to credit the West Indian all-rounder for his match-winning knock.

"Confronted with tricky surfaces in the last two matches, Sunrisers Hyderabad managed to come up trumps against Delhi Capitals but couldn't conquer the conditions or Mumbai Indians at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Uppal on Saturday night. Pitches that don't facilitate stroke-making often make for low-scoring and sometimes exciting contests. If you're bowling first, it is important to stay focused all the way through and especially at the death because even one or two expensive overs can make a huge difference. Kieron Pollard's innings was extremely critical on Saturday night, especially under the circumstances, and there is something to learn from that for us as a group,” said Laxman, reported TOI.

The former India batsman reckoned that the title cannot be won by a few individuals, while also being very positive about the fairly experienced middle order coming strong in future encounters.

"When you approach a middling target on a slow pitch, it is essential that you build a couple of handy partnerships and focus on team effort. In any case, titles are not won on the back of individual brilliance from one or two players. Both against Delhi Capitals and then against MI, the middle-order had the chance to establish its credentials. While it is true that they didn't deliver the goods on Saturday, we have total faith and belief in their abilities. They have been there and done that and I don't think it will be too long before they hit their straps," the 44-year-old added.

The opening duo of the Orange Army had a purple patch, as they struck three century stands among themselves in the first three games and played into the powerplay into the fourth game too. At the moment, both the batsmen are currently placed at the top among the highest run scorers in this edition of the cash-rich league. The middle order, primarily consisting of Vijay Shankar, Yusuf Pathan, Manish Pandey, Deepak Hooda among others, had hardly got any game time, and resultantly, tumbled in the previous match. But Laxman explained that the batsmen have been sweating it out in the nets and will perform well, while also crediting the team culture. 

"Because Davey (David) Warner and Jonny Bairstow batted so well and so deep in the first three matches, the middle-order didn't have enough game-time. But we ensure during practice that the batsmen prepare for all eventualities. So far as skills and preparation are concerned, there has been no compromise; I am confident the minor glitches in execution will be resolved soon. We're playing against Kings XI Punjab on Monday; and as the backroom staff, it is our responsibility to make sure the players are in a good mental space. While we will take learnings from our previous matches, especially from the losses, we don't want players to carry any baggage or negativity. A fresh start is vital," he concluded.

The Sunrisers will take on Kings XI Punjab today, at Mohali.

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