Veteran Indian pacer Bhuvneshwar Kumar has been appointed as stand-in skipper of Sunrisers Hyderabad for their opening encounter against the Rajasthan Royals. The 2016 IPL champions will miss out on a few overseas players for the first match of the tournament, including captain Aiden Markram. 

Such being the case, the vastly experienced Bhuvneshwar has been handed the reins of the squad while Markram is unavailable, with his previous familiarity with the role perhaps being one of the factors behind the appointment. The Sunrisers will also miss fast bowling all-rounder Marco Jansen, and an in-form Heinrich Klaasen for their opener, but they are scheduled to be back in time from the next game onwards. Follow your favourite IPL team with attractive Dafa betting odds only from Dafabet.

Markram, Jansen, and Klaasen are all part of the Proteas side for the two-match One Day International series against minnows Netherlands, and will fulfill their commitments with the national side before arriving in India for the high-profile tournament. What would have otherwise been a straightforward series, allowing the senior members of the squad to arrive at the IPL at its expense has been complicated by South Africa’s position in the ODI Super League. 

The Proteas risk not earning direct qualification for the ODI World Cup that is to take place later this year, and will have to sweep the series against Holland to keep their chances alive. In addition, they will have to depend on Bangladesh to beat Ireland in at least one of the three ODIs that the sides will play against each other. 

Meanwhile, Sunrisers management have placed their trust in Bhuvneshwar, who has been in the squad since their inception back in 2013. He has been a top performer, and has also led the team in a combined seven games in the 2019 and 2022 seasons, winning two of them. 

The Sunrisers have revamped their set-up, getting rid of their two most prominent leaders in Williamson and Warner for Markram, who recently also led Sunrisers Eastern Cape to an inaugural series win in the SA20. Follow Dafabet Sports to get more updates from IPL 2023.