Over the past 12 months, Harry Brook has been one of the world’s best young male cricket players. In just 10 innings, Brook has scored 809 runs with an impressive average of 80.90, including 4 centuries and 3 half-centuries in Tests. Even though his contribution to England’s T20 World Cup win wasn’t significant, he was still highly sought after at the Indian Premier League auction in December 2022. The Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) signed the 24-year-old for whopping ₹13.25 crores, partly due to his prior performances in the Pakistan Super League and other T20 leagues.
In the Indian Premier League, Brook has not had the start he was hoping for. Against the Rajasthan Royals, he posted 13 off 21 balls in a batting performance at number 4, only to be dismissed by Yuzvendra Chahal. An even worse fate came against LSG, as he compiled a measly 3 off 4 deliveries before being stumped off of Ravi Bishnoi’s bowling.
Let’s examine three potential reasons, each elaborated in detail, for why Brook could potentially face difficulties in this Indian Premier League season:
1) Playing for the first time in India
Harry Brook is being touted as an upcoming cricketing star by many experts. But playing cricket in India is a whole other ball game. With cricket being a religion in India, the pressure and intensity of the environment could be daunting for a youngster making their debut in this part of the world. The Indian Premier League is the ultimate T20 competition at the domestic level, and the high price tag means that there are big expectations from the player.
One season of failure in the league, such as the one experienced by Smriti Mandhana while she was the captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore in the first Women’s T20 Premier League, can sometimes make it hard for players to play their natural game. It’s not right to judge a player on their performance in just one season – particularly if the player is as talented as Harry Brook. He is unfamiliar with the Indian conditions, and most of his cricket has been played in England, where spin does not play a major role in developing a young batter.
2) Struggles against the wrist-spin
Harry Brook has been an incredibly dominant force in the longest format of the game, but that same level of dominance does not extend to T20s. He has amassed 1403 runs at an impressive average of 37.07 and a strike rate of 160.84 when facing pace bowlers. On the other hand, Brook has proved far less successful against spin bowlers, with a lower average of 26.84 and a strike rate of 127.48. Things look even worse for him when facing wrist spinners; he has scored just 311 runs at an average of 18.29 and a strike rate of 117.80.
3) Vulnerable top-order of Sun Risers Hyderabad
SunRisers Hyderabad entered the tournament with one of the most impressive batting lineups, made up of fearless players. However, the first two matches have gone against their expectations. Mayank Agarwal had a rough year for the Punjab Kings last year and is still looking for his form. Aiden Markram is in his first season as captain of SunRisers Hyderabad, and his performance is yet to be seen.
Rahul Tripathi was also off-color in the game against Lucknow Super Giants. The top-order batters seem to be easy prey for quality bowling – both spin and seam. If none of the top-order players get going, then Brook might not be able to play his attacking brand of cricket as often as he would like.
