At a Glance
- SRH were formed in 2013 after Deccan Chargers were terminated by the IPL
- David Warner and Bhuvneshwar Kumar starred as SRH won their first title in 2016
- Recent years have seen a revival within the franchise
The Sunrisers Hyderabad came into being in the 2013 Indian Premier League season when the then Hyderabad-based franchise Deccan Chargers were terminated by the IPL.
The Initial Sunrisers Hyderabad years
In 2013, SRH retained 20 players from the disbanded Deccan Chargers side. Kumar Sangakkara was named captain, Cameron White his deputy. The Sunrisers would make it to the playoffs in their very first season. There was no fairytale ending, however.
The Rajasthan Royals would beat SRH in the eliminator to knock them out of the 2013 edition of the IPL.
The seasons that followed would be more forgettable, if anything. Shikhar Dhawan was named captain for the 2014 campaign and SRH finished sixth. David Warner would lead them to a second successive sixth-place finish in 2015. The management continued with Warner as captain and he would almost immediately repay their faith in him.
SRH Reach the Top of the Mountain
The new Hyderabad franchise wouldn’t have to wait for too long. Just three years into the franchise’s existence, this group of players would etch their names in the annals of IPL history.
An unbelievable season for captain David Warner would see him score 848 runs in a season. An Orange Cap-winning effort in any other season at that point, but would only be good enough for second place behind Virat Kohli’s 973 that year.
It is the Aussie that would have the last laugh, however. The Warner-led Sunrisers Hyderabad would beat Kohli’s RCB in the final in Bengaluru.
As far as individual accolades go, Indian pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar would come away with the Purple Cap for his 23 wickets that year – a feat he’d repeat in 2017 with 26 wickets. Kumar remains the only bowler to win the Purple Cap in consecutive years.
SRH: A Model of Consistency from 2017-2020
Hyderabad had consistent returns from the time they won the title in 2016 right up until the 2020 campaign. They became only the third team to reach the playoffs in five consecutive seasons after CSK (2008-2015) and MI (2010-2015).
They would also make the final in 2018, losing to a CSK team that were intent on answering their critics after a two-year suspension. However, that would be it for SRH in terms of title wins for the time being.
The Dreaded 2020s
While SRH started the decade positively, reaching the playoffs once more, it was the beginning of a forgettable few years. Two last place finishes in 2021 and 2023 were sandwiched by an 8th place finish (out of 10 teams now) in 2022.
Thankfully for the SRH fans, 2024 would be different. Just not different enough. In a season where the headlines were dominated by Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma’s fireworks at the top of the order, Hyderabad made it to the final where they would be outplayed by KKR.
As of this writing, though, SRH’s hunt for a second title remains alive in a season where they started slowly only to storm into playoff places with six wins in seven games. Another playoff here could mean another chance to relive the glory of 2016 for the Hyderabad-based franchise.
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