Hyderabad (Telangana), India -- On April 7th (ANI report): The head coach for Sunrisers Hyderabad, Daniel Vettori, has expressed his continued support for his powerful hitters following yet another disappointing performance during their match with the Gujarat Titans. Nonetheless, he admitted that these players must learn to adapt to different wicket situations and understand how opposing bowlers strategically target them at the start of each innings.

As Hyderabad's aggressive batsmen struggled again, the Sunrisers suffered their fourth consecutive loss in the current IPL season. Their bats remained largely silent, while 'Miyaan Magic' captivated the audience, leading Hyderabad to finish at 152/8 off 20 overs. The Titans then chased down the target swiftly, reaching it in just 16.4 overs with seven wickets remaining.

"I believe we understand that the style will be effective, yet we must consider the circumstances carefully and ensure proper evaluation—something which might not have happened sufficiently so far,” stated Vettori during the post-match press briefing according to ESPNcricinfo. “Additionally, we need to acknowledge how effectively opposing teams are performing with their bowls, particularly focusing extensive strategies for our first three players, who occasionally struggle to implement these plans.”

Vettori sensed that the pitch on Sunday was not characteristic of a usual Hyderabad wicket. He stated that the sluggish and "challenging" environment posed significant difficulties for the batsmen as they aimed to achieve a target of around 160-170 runs.

“I believe they realized that the pitch was quite challenging, and the evaluation suggested that scoring between 160 and 170 would be ideal, aligning with our expectations from earlier in the day. We understood that these players, if they managed to settle in, create a solid alliance, and subsequently target the latter part of the innings, might achieve this, as we nearly did towards the conclusion,” he stated.

"To reach our target, we needed an additional 20 runs to create some pressure and also had to bowl exceptionally well. However, I believe they [GT's] comprehension of the situation was precise," he commented.

The Sunrisers sang harmoniously following their impressive 286/6 victory over the Rajasthan Royals in their opening match. Nevertheless, Hyderabad has since lost its way and has been spiraling downward, finding it difficult to put together consistent performances as they have only shown flashes of brilliance here and there.

Even after suffering four consecutive losses, Vettori doesn’t think it’s time to push the panic button within his team. However, he acknowledges the consequences of their present circumstances and recognizes the necessity of getting back to victory in their next matches.

"I don’t believe Pat [Cummins] has ever been one to panic, and I’d say I’m quite alike in that regard. However, we both grasp the consequences of dropping four games consecutively and how challenging that can make the entire season. It’s tough since everyone entered this season with lofty expectations following our performance as runners-up last year and having started so well," he stated.

However, we simply haven’t been at our best in the past four matches. This applies across all three aspects of the game. Typically, a team’s performance is gauged by their fielding, and ours has been quite weak recently. Therefore, these areas will require improvement leading up to the match against Punjab. It’s important for us to remember that when we find our rhythm, we remain a highly capable squad; we’re merely failing to play to our potential,” he concluded.

While the focus on the Sunrisers in the 18th edition has been on their beleaguered batters, Vettori sees it differently. The former New Zealand spinner believes his side needs a lift in all three spectrums of the game.

"We haven’t managed to connect effectively in a match. When we reflect on last year, our team was scoring substantial points and managing to hold onto the ball despite tough challenges," he stated. "However, various factors have prevented us from consistently achieving high-scoring performances this time around," he added.

"One of the positives about the IPL is the rapid scheduling, which provides numerous chances for success along with standout individual plays during these matches. Hence, I believe there remains a sense of assurance among the batsmen; however, what matters most now is how they perform as a unit," he concluded. (ANI)