SRH will be without Pat Cummins for a few matches.
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have suffered a massive blow even before the start of IPL 2026, with their captain Pat Cummins set to miss a few initial games. He suffered a back injury, and while he returned for one of the Ashes 2025 Tests, Australia have been cautious with his case. He missed the T20 World Cup 2026, and his participation in IPL will depend on the rehab and recovery.
His unavailability couldn’t have come at a worse time for SRH, who already have one of the weakest bowling attacks in the competition. They have a young spin unit, whereas the pace department remains vulnerable despite all the experience. Eshan Malinga is also uncertain due to his injury, with his participation in doubt.
A major reason for their weak bowling attack remains their increasingly high focus on getting firepower in the batting department. For instance, they spent a big sum to get Liam Livingstone when they already had multiple options. That meant SRH’s bowling remained vulnerable even after the auction.
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Sunrisers Hyderabad have a couple of all-rounders – Brydon Carse and Jack Edwards – who could be in contention to replace Pat Cummins in the playing XI. They also have Shivam Mavi as an Indian option, while other local pacers are highly inexperienced. Ideally, Carse should get the nod ahead for his attributes with both bat and ball.
Carse is a lanky pacer who can bowl shorter lengths at high speeds. He obviously generates extra bounce and makes the ball zip off the surface. That makes him suited for an enforcer role in the middle overs.
If he plays, SRH can use Jaydev Unadkat with the new ball, while Harshal Patel can close the powerplay. In between, spinners can be used as matchups. That would allow Carse to bowl more in the middle overs when the field is spread, giving his hard lengths more protection on flat decks.
Overall, eight of his 14 wickets since last year have come via back-of-a-length or short deliveries. He has seven wickets at 15.85 runs apiece and an economy rate of 7.92 in the middle overs. Clearly, the value remains immense, and he can come as a surprise factor for most Indian batters who have yet to face him.
No other pacer in the SRH squad can hit the deck as much as Brydon Carse, whose natural lengths are short. With spinners being a bit inexperienced, they would need someone who can bowl into the pitch, and the English pacer also brings a genuine wicket-taking knack. On flat surfaces, only bowlers with Carse’s attributes can bring breakthroughs, even if he remains expensive at times.
Apart from his enforcer skills, Brydon Carse can also contribute handsomely with the willow. He’s not just another bowling all-rounder; his batting value remains immense. In fact, his batting abilities are higher than Pat Cummins.
Carse can whack pace with a stable base and brute power. Hence, he can bat somewhere at No.7 above Harshal Patel and provide more depth to an already-strong batting unit. That would help the top order score freely and give some cushion to a weak bowling lineup.
He will unlikely have enough issues on flat pitches, especially in Hyderabad. Even against spinners, Carse can manage to preserve his wicket and hit a few boundaries due to minimal assistance. This is precisely the role he’s made up for.
Jack Edwards showed improved bowling expertise in the BBL, but he can’t hit the deck as hard as Brydon Carse because of his low pace. On Indian surfaces, his bowling is unlikely to reap enough success. SRH already have medium pacers in Harshal Patel and Jaydev Unadkat who perform the same role with better results.
As a batter, No.7 might be a bit too low for someone like Edwards. He has batted in the lower order for a few franchises, but his returns haven’t been consistent enough to back him for this role against better bowling attacks in the IPL. They already have multiple batters like Liam Livingstone and Nitish Kumar Reddy, who might be forced to bat out of position.
Meanwhile, Shivam Mavi has yet to unleash his full potential with both bat and ball. He has been highly injury-prone and hasn’t played enough cricket at this level. Additionally, his bowling might not be suited for the middle overs, which is something SRH need to strengthen in the absence of Cummins and with a weak spin attack.
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His batting skills are decent, but SRH need someone with a higher bowling value. They already have numerous batters and enough depth. If the priority is bowling, Brydon Carse remains better than both Jack Edwards and Shivam Mavi.
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