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Sunrisers Hyderabad not out there to make a statement: Tom Moody
Sunrisers Hyderabad are the first tam to make to the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018 playoffs. SRH coach Tom Moody says he would leave that to the opponents, and have his team focus on business ahead.
From losing their captain and batting mainstay in David Warner to winning six games on the trot and becoming the first team to make it to the knockout stages of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2018, Sunrisers Hyderabad have seen it all.
Sunrisers Hyderabad possess what can arguably be described as the best bowling attack among all contesting teams, as time and again they have defended low totals to showcase their abilities with the ball.
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But it was in the previous match that SRH truly flexed their batting muscle, successfully chasing a daunting 188 against Delhi Daredevils with nine wickets and more than an over to spare. The win gave SRH a ticket to the final four in IPL 2018, but more importantly, an opportunity to warn their opponents going ahead.
The superlative knock from Rishabh Pant (128 off 63 balls) would have inflated the best of teams, but not SRH. Kane Williamson (83*) and Shikhar Dhawan (92*) added 176 runs unbeaten for the second wicket, sending across a very strong message to their opponents.
However, SRH coach Tom Moody says he would leave that to the opponents, and have his team focus on business ahead.
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“It is up to the opposition or the people who are watching to (decide) whether that is a statement or not. To me, I thought it was an opportunity, and that is what I said to the playing group in the interval between the two innings: ‘this provides us with an opportunity to step up as a batting group and to express ourselves on a smallish ground with a wicket that was pretty true’,” he said.
“Delhi was an opportunity for us to express ourselves as a batting group and both Kane (Williamson) and Shikhar (Dhawan) did it in great style,” Moody added.
The win over Delhi also in a way defined SRH’s approach in big chases, despite their opening slot going through changes over the course of the tournament.
SRH — the best side in auction as well as on field
But for the team that won IPL in 2016 under Warner’s captaincy, the core values are very different from others. Away from the glitter and star-attraction, SRH have emerged as the team that won battles with smart buys during the auction, and making best use of them on the field.
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A bowling unit consisting Bhuvneshwar Kumar, on-song Siddharth Kaul and Rashid Khan is enough to get opposition scratching their heads, but according to Moody, the idea is to not let them have an inch.
“It is (defending small totals) something that the whole squad takes pride in, because defending a total is a collective responsibility and you obviously need the bowler as well as 10 other fielders to take responsibility. It has definitely been a focus of ours -- one, getting the right balance in the bowling attack and two, supporting the bowlers as best as possible on the field,” he said.
