IPL 2025: A look at SRH's strongest playing XI
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), the runners-up of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, are set to field a strong playing XI for the 2025 season. The team retained five key players for ₹75 crore and went into the IPL 2025 mega auction in Jeddah with ₹45 crore. Over two days, SRH managed to sign a number of quality Indian players to strengthen their squad for a second IPL title.
Head and Sharma to open the innings
Australian top-order batter Travis Head, retained by SRH for ₹14 crore after his stellar IPL 2024, will be a key player next season. Head, who made his SRH debut last season, scored 567 runs at a strike rate of 191.55 in just 15 matches. Another major player who contributed heavily to SRH's final run last year with his 484 runs at a strike rate of over 200 was also retained for ₹14 crore- Abhishek Sharma.
Kishan and Reddy to fill the middle order
SRH acquired Indian wicketkeeper-batter Ishan Kishan for ₹11.25 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction. Kishan, who has previously represented Gujarat Lions and Mumbai Indians, has scored a total of 2,644 runs in his IPL career to date. The team also retained young Indian all-rounder Nitish Kumar Reddy for ₹6 crore after his all-round show in IPL 2024 where he scored 303 runs and took three wickets. Kishan and Nitish will bat at three and four, respectively.
Klaasen and Mendis: Expensive retainee and debutant
Heinrich Klaasen became SRH's most expensive player in IPL history after being retained for ₹23 crore ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction. He has been a consistent performer for the team, scoring 448 and 479 runs in the last two seasons. Klaasen will also double-up as a keeper. Sri Lankan all-rounder Kamindu Mendis was signed by SRH for ₹75 lakh, marking his IPL debut in the upcoming season. He will be next in the order.
Manohar and Cummins: Experienced players for SRH
SRH signed Karnataka's hard-hitting batter Abhinav Manohar for ₹3.20 crore in the IPL 2025 mega auction. The right-handed batter has played 19 IPL matches for GT, scoring a total of 231 runs. Pat Cummins, who led SRH to the IPL final in his first season with the team, was retained for ₹18 crore by the franchise ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction. The Australian will lead the bowling attack.
Patel and Shami: SRH's bowling attack
SRH signed Harshal Patel for ₹8 crore on the first day of the IPL 2025 mega auction. The veteran pacer played for PBKS in IPL 2024 and won Purple Cap. The team also bagged services of star Indian pacer Mohammed Shami for ₹10 crore in the mega auction. Shami won the Purple Cap in IPL 2023 and has taken a total of 127 wickets in his IPL career so far. Rahul Chahar would be the lone specialist spinner.
SRH's Strongest XI
SRH's strongest XI For IPL 2025: Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Ishan Kishan (wk), Heinrich Klaasen, Kamindu Mendis, Nitish Reddy, Abhinav Manohar, Pat Cummins (C), Mohammed Shami, Harshal Patel, Rahul Chahar.
