IPL 2025: Aakash Chopra questions Sunrisers Hyderabad’s aggressive batting style after heavy loss against Kolkata Knight Riders

Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra slammed Sunrisers Hyderabad’s aggressive batting style after they suffered a blowout loss of 80 runs against defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Thursday.

Chasing 201 runs for the win, the Orange Army was skittled out for a meager score of 120 runs with Vaibhav Arora and Varun Chakravarthy bagging three wickets apiece. 

The SRH batters kept backing their aggressive approach despite losing wickets at regular intervals. The top three batters – Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, and Ishan Kishan – were dismissed for single-digit scores. Earlier, SRH could manage only 190 runs on a batting friendly pitch whereas they were bundled out for 163 runs against Delhi Capitals.

“Naam bade, darshan chhote (big names but hardly any performance). It seems like that if we have a look at their batting order. They won’t change their playing style at all. They play like that continuously. 190 once, then 163, and if your graph is going downwards and you are losing wickets consistently in the powerplay, you need to ask a question where you are going,” Aakash Chorpa said on his YouTube Channel

“I am unable to understand Nitish Kumar Reddy’s shots. Ishan Kishan scored runs in the first match, but then three low scores. Abhishek Sharma is not looking the same. He is playing shots, but at what stage, do you say it’s not lack of runs but lack of form?” Chopra added.

Chopra is not impressed with Abhishek Sharma, who has failed to deliver in four matches of the tournament.

“You were looking good, then you got run out once, then you didn’t score runs, and got out once more. Suddenly, four innings have passed, and you haven’t scored runs. Then you start asking questions as to what is happening,” Chopra observed.

The renowned commentator further questioned Travis Head’s poor record while chasing a score in T20s.

“One thing got highlighted. Travis Head hasn’t scored runs against KKR. He hasn’t scored runs against Mitchell Starc. He hasn’t scored runs in 200-plus chases, and that is absolutely bizarre,” he said.

“If you have an average not even of 10, you don’t play even a single good knock and don’t become the differentiator in the match, it will have to be said that he is the headmaster, but not in a run chase,” the analyst added.

Sunrisers Hyderabad will next take on Gujarat Titans at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Hyderabad on Sunday.