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'He's an asset. I'm looking forward to watching him more in coming days': Akhtar hails SRH pacer as 'exciting talent'
Akhtar has been impressed with his superb comeback to IPL, who has picked 17 wickets in nine innings and is among the contenders for the Purple Cap
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), the 2016 champions of the Indian Premier League (IPL), have had a topsy turvy journey so far in the 15th edition of the tournament. They lost their first two before scripting a stunning comeback by winning five games in a row to move to the top of the table. However, Kane Williamson's poor form and a couple of injuries led to their four straight losses which leave their season hanging. Amid this hot and cold journey, there has been an Indian cricketer that has managed to impress Pakistan legend Shoaib Akhtar immensely. (Follow IPL 2022 full coverage)
_1652087390898_1652087396250.jpg "SRH team; Shoaib Akhtar")
Akhtar has been impressed with Natarajan's superb comeback to IPL, who has picked 17 wickets in nine innings and is among the contenders for the Purple Cap. These wickets have come at an average of 17.66 and with an economy rate of 8.66.
Speaking to Sportskeeda, the former Pakistan pacer hailed the 31-year-old Indian pacer as an “asset” and an “exciting talent”.
“Natarajan is an exciting talent. He is an asset and I am looking forward to watching more of him in the coming days. Bhuvneshwar, of course, is a very clever and wise bowler. Both have very a good understanding of their skills,” he said.
SRH presently stand sixth in the points table with five wins in 11 games. They have three more games to go - against Kolkata Knight Riders on May 14, against Mumbai Indians on May 17 and against Punjab Kings on May 22. If they can win all their remaining games, they can still make the playoffs with other factors in play.
"It’s been quite a challenge for us, we need to come up with ways to reverse that pressure and turn around. These have been par totals, the batting has been quality, but as a unit there are areas to touch on. I think earlier in the competition when there was assistance with the new ball we were certainly very threatening, so we need to go back to the drawing board as we have a little gap between the next game," SRH skipper Kane Williamson said after their defeat to RCB by 67 runs in Mumbai on Sunday.
