"They were searching for a new captain and he came very expensive" - Aakash Chopra on SRH buying Pat Cummins for a massive sum in IPL 2024 auction

Aakash Chopra reckons the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) were forced to buy Pat Cummins at an exorbitant amount in the IPL 2024 auction as they were looking for a captain.

The Hyderabad-based franchise outbid the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) to acquire Cummins for ₹20.50 crore at the auction. They spent a total of ₹30.80 crore to buy six players, with Travis Head at ₹6.80 crore being their other big-ticket purchase.

In a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that the SunRisers Hyderabad might have paid big bucks to buy Cummins only because they needed a captain. He explained (1:25):

"I was slightly surprised. His Test cricket is unreal. He is one of the finest players. He captains the Australian team and does well - won them the Ashes and the World Test Championship and also won them the ODI World Cup, which is phenomenal. The big question is why 20.50 crores because IPL numbers are ordinary."

The former India opener added:

"He has gone there only because he would be made the captain. There was a change in the coaching staff. You see Daniel Vettori there and his Australian connection, so you say that he should be made the captain as they didn't enjoy Markram's captaincy. They were searching for a new captain and he came very expensive."

Cummins has picked up 45 wickets in 42 IPL games at an underwhelming economy rate of 8.54. The Australian seamer has fared better in T20Is, accounting for 55 dismissals in 50 matches at a decent economy rate of 7.37.

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"They bought Travis Head as well although they have so many openers" - Aakash Chopra on SRH's acquisition of Aussie opener

Travis Head is the only overseas opener in the SRH lineup. [P/C: BCCI]

Aakash Chopra isn't convinced about the SunRisers Hyderabad's decision to buy Travis Head. He reasoned (4:05):

"They bought Travis Head as well although they have so many openers. They have Abhishek Sharma, Rahul Tripathi and Mayank Agarwal. When you have three Indian openers available, you ask why one more is required, but they wanted Travis Head as well."

The cricketer-turned-commentator reckons Head's acquisition implies Aiden Markram might not get a place in SRH's playing XI. He said:

"If we leave the recency bias aside for some time, his T20 numbers are as ordinary as Pat Cummins, but they have kept him, which means they are thinking differently. It means Aiden Markram might not get a chance to play at all."

Chopra opined that Head, Heinrich Klaasen and Pat Cummins will occupy three of the four overseas positions in SRH's playing XI. He added that either Glenn Phillips or Marco Jansen will likely take the remaining foreign player's spot.