Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have made a bold choice to appoint South African Markram as the skipper of the side ahead of Mayank Agarwal and Bhuvneshwar Kumar in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). The choice became obvious after leading the sister franchise of SRH -Sunrisers Eastern Cape to the SA20 title earlier in the month where Markram was the skipper of the side. The latest season of the IPL is set to begin in March where they will try to win their first IPL title since 2016.
Markram wins the race
While there was a direct fight between Markram and Mayank Agarwal for the captaincy slot, it was the South African who got the nod having tasted success with the sister franchise in South Africa. The right-handed batter led Sunrisers Eastern Cape to four wins in 10 league matches and would then propel his side to glory earlier this month.
Mayank who was acquired in the auctions, having been released by Punjab Kings was also one of the names in running. However, his poor show with the Punjab Kings last season saw him miss emerge as the second favourite.
Bhuvneshwar Kumar, who was named vice-captain of the Indian side during their tour of Ireland last year was also unfortunate to miss out on the captain’s armband.
Markram will have big shoes to fill in as he now steps in for Kane Williamson who was released at the end of last season.
SRH to hunt for glory
Under the reins of Markram, SRH will now hunt for their first IPL title in seven years having last clinched glory in 2016 under the captaincy of David Warner. Last season SRH finished eighth in the IPL standings with six wins and eight defeats and collected 12 points under Williamson’s captaincy.
SRH will start their IPL 2023 campaign against 2008 champions and 2022 season runners-up Rajasthan Royals as they will take on the Blue army at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad on Sunday, April 2.
