IPL 2020 | Jonny Bairstow and David Warner seem to gel and sink nicely, reckons Scott Styris
Scott Styris has reckoned that Jonny Bairstow and David Warner have a good understanding with each other which might force SRH management to pick Bairstow over Kane Williamson. He pointed out that SRH has all their foreign players fixed, hence, they just need to get their Indian players to perform.
Sunrisers Hyderabad opens their IPL 2020 campaign with a match against Royal Challengers Bangalore in Dubai on Monday. SRH has been a force to reckon with in IPL over the past few years due to a very well balanced team. Both their batting and bowling departments are loaded with T20 specialists. These players might not be huge stars but they are definitely great performers and that is what allowed SRH to win the title in 2016 and also reach the final in 2018. However, their team combination is something that they will have a hard time thinking about.
David Warner is a certainty, but whether they will opt for the in-form Jonny Bairstow or go for the dependable Kane Williamson is a big question. The other certainty in the team is Afghanistan spinner, Rashid Khan. With Warner and Rashid definitely playing, the choice becomes tricky as to whether go for both Bairstow and Williamson or opt for the versatile Afghan all-rounder Mohammad Nabi.
Former New Zealand all-rounder Scott Styris, who currently works with Star Sports, made a bold choice that Williamson might not get his place in the playing XI despite being one of the better performing players for the franchise.
“Kane Williamson sits out, I know he is the orange cap holder two years ago when Warner was serving his suspension for the year, but I just think with the balance of that side, they have got a proven David Warner.
“He, along with Kohli, have been the two-best batsman in this competition for many years now. His leadership is terrific. I think he really buys into as well the culture and the group of SRH. So, I think Bairstow’s performance last year and the relationship he has with Warner at the top. They just seem to gel and sink nicely,” Styris said Star Sports’ show Game Plan.
“I like Nabi’s performances recently, he’s certainly in my eyes and of course so is Rashid Khan. Probably the one side where the four overseas players are set in stone and it’s now about getting the performances of the Indian players around them to suit. So, out of that group as New Zealander unfortunately, Kane Williamson sits out,” Styris added further.