SRH vs RCB: "Not going to work every game" - Pat Cummins promises continuation of aggressive cricket after RCB hammering

Pat Cummins-led Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) lost against the Faf du Plessis-led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the 41st match of the Indian Premier League 2024 (IPL 2024) on Thursday, April 25, at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad.

Sunrisers Hyderabad were invited to bowl first in the match as RCB didn't want to face the powerplay blitzkrieg of the home team. SRH didn't start off well with the ball as Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli took the bowlers to the cleaners. 

After a flying start, Virat Kohli got significantly slow but Rajat Patidar's 19-ball fifty kept the run rate in check. Kohli was dismissed for 43-ball 51 and Patidar walked back after scoring 20-ball 50. SRH bowlers did well in the middle overs, but they were poor in the death as Cameron Green batted well and along with other batters powered RCB to a total of 206 for 7. Jaydev Unadkat was the top performer for SRH in the bowling department as he bagged 3 wickets for 30 runs in his 100th IPL game.

Chasing the target, SRH were off to a nightmarish start as they lost their in-form opener Travis Head in the first over and Abhishek Sharma, Aiden Markram, and Heinrich Klaasen inside the powerplay. The middle-order and lower-order batters of the team tried to take the game deep but they were eventually restricted to 171/8 to hand over RCB a 35-run victory.

Speaking after the match, Pat Cummins said that they gave away a few extra runs with the ball and were below par with the bat as well. Pat Cummins stated:

"Not an ideal night. Few over par with the ball and unfortunately lost a few wickets throughout our innings. We were gonna bat first, it seems to be working for us. Before the last few wins, we were thinking that we were a bowl-first team. Didn't go our way."

Pat Cummins revealed that he speaks to the team after the victories and coach Daniel Vettori does the job after the defeats. Pat Cummins said:

"(Messaging to the group) I speak after wins, Dan (Vettori) speaks after losses. The boys have been going really well, it's T20 cricket, you are not going to win every game. Don't dwell on this too much."

Pat Cummins further said that the ultra-aggressive approach of their batting unit is their strong suit and they are not going to win every game with it, but that's the way forward for them. Pat Cummins said:

"(High risk, high reward approach with the bat) I think it's our strong suit. It's not going to work every game. One or two games where it hasn't gone our way at the start, we still managed to get a good total. Still think this is the way forward for our boys."

Batters Doing Heavy Lifting For Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) In Indian Premier League 2024

Sunrisers Hyderabad have been a batting dominant team in the Indian Premier League 2024 and they broke Royal Challengers Bengaluru's long-standing record of highest IPL total thrice in their first seven games.

SRH batters have been absolutely fearless and they have done the heavy lifting to compensate for their bowling deficiencies. Before the match against RCB, SRH registered scores of 208/7, 277/3, 162/8, 165/5, 182/9, 287/3 and 266/7 in their first seven matches.

In those matches, SRH bowlers were underwhelming on most occasions as the one-time IPL champions conceded the following scores - 208/7, 246/5, 168/3, 166/4, 180/6, 262/7 and 199 - against Kolkata Knight Riders, Mumbai Indians, Gujarat Titans, Chennai Super Kings, Punjab Kings, Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Delhi Capitals respectively.