SRH left T. Natarajan out of the playing XI in the clash against MI on Saturday night. Sunrisers Director of Cricket Tom Moody revealed a real reason behind Natarajan’s exclusion.
The ninth match of the IPL 2021 took place between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Mumbai Indians at the M. A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. Mumbai Indians came into the match with a win behind their backs while SRH had suffered two losses in their first two games.
In a desperate attempt to bring some fortunes to the side, SRH made four changes in the playing XI ahead MI clash. SRH left out Holder, Saha, Nadeem, Natarajan and brought in Mujeeb, Virat Singh, Abhishek Sharma and Khaleel Ahmed. Jonny Bairstow moved to the top of the order.
However, T Natarajan’s exclusion came as a shock too many, who was replaced by Khaleel Ahmed, another left-arm pacer. Natarajan was SRH’s best seamer last year, picking up 16 wickets with an economy of 8.02 while predominantly bowling at the death overs phase. Later, he made his international debut for India, playing all three formats in a short span and did a good job for India.
Natarajan started this IPL season decently, returning with 32-1 in four overs in the second game. However, Sunrisers Hyderabad’s Director of Cricket, Tom Moody confirmed that the bowler isn’t dropped and the franchise is managing his workload.
T Natarajan’s workload management
T Natarajan was the biggest find of the IPL 2020 as he made a name for himself with toe-crushing yorkers. His consistency at nailing the yorkers was the most impressive thing. On the back of those performances, Natarajan made his debut for India on the Australia tour where he did quite well. In an unprecedented series of events, he even got the opportunity to play a Test match.
The BCCI seemed to be managing him as they had asked Tamil Nadu Cricket Association to release him from the squad for Vijay Hazare Trophy. Natarajan was spotted at the National Cricket Academy during the ODI series against England despite being named in the squad. Reportedly, he was nursing an injury and only joined the squad later.
