SRH is enjoying Pat Cummins' captaincy: Shahbaz Ahmed opens up team's environment

Shahbaz Ahmed opened up on Pat Cummins' captaincy for SRH in IPL 2024. He hailed Cummins for his leadership and reaffirmed that the team has been enjoying his captaincy so far. SRH became the 3rd team to qualify for the playoffs after KKR and RR. Cummins was roped in by SRH for a whopping price of Rs 20.50, making him the 2nd most expensive player in the history of IPL. He was announced as the captain of the franchise ahead of the season. His captaincy played a huge role in changing the fortunes of the team.

SRH's all-rounder Shahbaz heaped praise on Cummins and acknowledged him for always backing the bowlers. He mentioned that as a bowler himself, he has always motivated the others around him. He also credited Cummins and SRH coach Daniel Vettori for creating a positive atmosphere in the team. He reckoned that there has been a sense of freedom with which the team has been playing without a lot of pressure. MI vs LSG: Live score

"If I talk about myself whenever Pat throws the ball to me, he always backs me. This sort of helps me to soak in pressure well and even if the ball goes to the boundary, he doesn't say anything and keeps motivating all bowlers. He and the coach have created such an environment that no player in the camp ever feels that there's any sort of pressure. The players are playing freely, we enjoy playing under his captaincy and that has what helped us to perform well," Shahbaz said.

SRH's change in fortunes

The SunRisers have been a force to reckon with this season as they have been on a record-breaking spree this season. Their bowling unit has also peaked at the right time with the pacers, including Cummins, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and T Natrajan impressing with the ball. Meanwhile, Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma have been 2 pillars of their success with their aggressive batting approach. IPL 2024 Full Coverage | IPL 2024 Points Table and Standings | 2024 IPL Full Schedule

This was the first after 2020, when SRH reached the playoffs after ending their campaign at the bottom of the table in 2021 and 2023 and in the 8th spot in 2022. Cummins has been credited for the team's turnaround, who have been playing a fearless brand of cricket.

SRH would want to secure the 2nd spot in the points table in the lead-up to the play-offs. SunRisers will hope RR, who are on a 4-match losing streak, lose their last match against KKR. They will also be expected to win the match against PBKS on May 19, Sunday.