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Harry Brook has been one of the best young male cricketers in the world over the past 12 months. He has had a sensational start to his Test career, scoring 809 runs in 6 Tests at an average of 80.90 with 4 centuries and 3 half-centuries in just 10 innings.
Brook was also a part of England's T20 World Cup-winning squad last year in Australia, though his contribution to the team's success was not really significant.
The 24-year-old was in great demand at the IPL auction in December 2022, as Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) signed him for ₹13.25 crores - their most expensive acquisition ever at an IPL auction. His performances in the Pakistan Super League and other T20 leagues definitely played a part in the same.
However, he has not started well at all in the IPL. Batting at number 4, he scored 13 off 21 balls against the Rajasthan Royals before Yuzvendra Chahal bowled him. In the next innings, he scored only 3 off 4 balls against LSG, having been stumped off a delivery by wrist-spinner Ravi Bishnoi.
Here's a look at three potential reasons why Brook might struggle in the IPL this season:
#1 Playing in India for the first time
Many cricket experts have touted Harry Brook as the next big thing. However, it is difficult to play cricket in India. The intensity and craze of this country, where cricket is a religion, might make things intimidating for a youngster playing here for the first time in his career.
The IPL is by far the highest level of T20 cricket at the domestic level. The pressure of the price tag automatically increases the weight of expectations from the player. Hence, a few failures might not allow the player to play their natural game. We saw it with star batter Smriti Mandhana, who had a poor run as Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper in the first edition of the Women's Premier League.
While it is unfair to judge the ability of a player based on just one season, especially if it is someone as talented as Harry Brook, that is just how any sport works. He is also alien to Indian conditions, having played most of his cricket in England where spin does not play a very crucial role in the development of a young batter.
#2 Struggles against wrist-spin
While Harry Brook has dominated all types of bowling in the longest format till now, the same cannot be said for T20s. He is extremely dominant against pace bowling, scoring 1403 runs at an average of 37.07, and has an outrageous strike rate of 160.84. However, the average and strike rate drops to 26.84 and 127.48 respectively against spin bowling.
Brook particularly struggles against wrist spin - having scored 311 runs at an average of 18.29 and a strike rate of 117.80. This implies that he is neither able to preserve his wicket nor score quickly against spinners.
#3 SRH's top order looks vulnerable
Once the auction was over, it seemed like SRH had one of the strongest batting lineups on paper. They have a bunch of fearless players who would not shy away from taking on any bowler. However, the first two games have clearly not gone their way.
Mayank Agarwal had a terrible season last year for the Punjab Kings. He does not seem to be at his best, though it might be too early to make a call. It is yet to be seen how Aiden Markram will perform in his first season as SRH captain. Rahul Tripathi also looked off-color against LSG.
They seem to be done easily by quality bowling - both seam and spin. If none of the top-order batters get going, it means Brook might not be able to play his attacking brand of cricket as frequently as he can.
