IPL 2020: 3 players Sunrisers Hyderabad should have released, but didn't

Former IPL champions Sunrisers Hyderabad have announced their retained list of 15 players who will play for the Orange Army in the upcoming edition of the tournament. They have let go of five players from their IPL 2019 squad, as they seemed surplus to the requirements.

SRH have released the fewest number of players ahead of the IPL 2020 Auction. The side have ended their contract with two overseas and three Indian stars namely Martin Guptill, Shakib Al Hasan, Ricky Bhui, Yusuf Pathan and Deepak Hooda, and now these players will go under the hammer.

However, the side could have added three more names to this list, of players who didn't live up to the expectations in the 12th edition of the IPL.

Here, we look at three cricketers which Sunrisers Hyderabad should have released, but didn't.

Also see - IND vs WI schedule

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#3 Abhishek Sharma

Abhisekh Sharma played just 3 matches in IPL 2019

The 19-year-old Indian all-rounder Abhishek Sharma has been retained by the Hyderabad-based franchise for the next edition of Indian Premier League. Abhishek was a part of the Delhi Daredevils side in IPL 2018 before SRH bought him. But the up and coming star could not do the job that was expected of him in the last season.

Abhishek played only three matches in IPL 2019, scoring nine runs at a below-par average of 4.50. He could not make an impact with his bowling either, as he grabbed only one wicket in the three matches while conceding 21 runs at an expensive economy rate of 10.50 runs per over.

It would have been a good idea for SRH to release him and bring a well-established name at the auction instead.

#2 Shreevats Goswami

Shreevats Goswami has been with the SRH side since 2018

Shreevats Goswami is a 30-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman who was bought by the Hyderabad-based franchise for a whopping amount of INR 1 crore in IPL 2018. He had previously played for three other franchises before he was signed as the backup wicketkeeper by SRH.

However, they don't really need his services as they already have Wriddhiman Saha along with Englishman Jonny Bairstow, who can also keep wickets.

The two frontline keepers in the side did not allow Goswami to play a single match in the 12th edition of the IPL. He had played six matches for the Sunrisers in IPL 2018, but his performance was not particularly great.

The left-handed batsman scored 52 runs at a disappointing average of 17.33 in those six matches. He could not hit a single half-century, and his highest score was 40.

As Bairstow will be available for the entire season in 2020, it is unlikely that Sunrisers Hyderabad will include Shreevats in their playing XI. Besides, the presence of Manish Pandey, Bairstow, David Warner, Kane Williamson and Saha allows no room for one more specialist batsman in the lineup.

By doing away with Goswami, SRH could have used a crore to buy an all-rounder in the auction.

#1 Vijay Shankar

Vijay Shankar failed to perform consistently for SRH in IPL 2019.

Vijay Shankar returned to the Sunrisers Hyderabad squad in 2019 after a gap of one year. He was acquired along with Abhishek Sharma and Shahbaz Nadeem in exchange for Shikhar Dhawan during the trade window.

This trade did not prove to be beneficial for the Orange Army as Shankar had an ordinary outing in IPL 2019.

He played 15 matches in the 12th edition of the tournament where he aggregated 244 runs. Even though he batted up the order, he could not register a fifty and his highest score was just 40. Shankar's batting average of 20.33 was clearly not up to the mark.

The former Chennai Super Kings player could not make his presence felt in the bowling department either. He bowled only eight overs in the entire tourney, scalping one wicket and leaking 70 runs at an economy of 8.75 runs per over.

SRH should have released Shankar and looked for an all-rounder like Chris Morris as a replacement.