New Delhi. African batsman Heinrich Klaasen, who has scored half-centuries in the last two matches of IPL 2026, believes that the tournament has just begun for Sunrisers Hyderabad and he is confident that the 2016 IPL champion team will do well in all departments going forward, even though there have been two defeats in the first three matches. SRH lost their first match to Royal Challengers Bangalore by 6 wickets and then lost to Lucknow Super Giants by 5 wickets.
Sunriders’ only win came against Kolkata Knight Riders by 65 runs. Klaasen said, “Our batting has been fine so far, but we scored about 40 runs less in the three matches. We have to bat better. In the two matches where we were struggling, there was a lack of batting. The bowlers, especially the fast bowlers, have been excellent. We have to reach 220-230 runs so that the bowlers have a chance to defend.
Hyderabad’s problem is fielding
Heinrich Klaasen said that our fielding has been weak and this is affecting us. I would give us 6 out of 10 so far, we played some great cricket but missed the key moments.” Klaasen said, “The bowlers are playing as per the plan, the rest of the batting is also fine. I will give 80 percent but fielding needs improvement, we have to take catches. If the rating has to go up to 8-9 then all three departments will have to be brought together.
Klaasen is happy with his form
Klaasen, who retired from international cricket last year and is now playing only franchise cricket, has scored consecutive half-centuries in the last two matches for SRH and is happy with his form. He said, “Unfortunately we lost two matches but it was a good start for me personally, especially when I am not playing much cricket these days. I want to continue the form.” He is enjoying his role and responsibility at number 4. He said, “It is the same role that I have played throughout my career. It is to adapt to the situation, my role in the team is that whether (Ishan) Kishan, Abhishek (Sharma) or Travis Head are playing, I have to keep moving forward. Every match will be a different situation and I have to adapt to it.
Ishaan will prove to be a great captain
SRH’s next match will be against Punjab Kings on Saturday in New Chandigarh. Klaasen admitted that SRH are missing Pat Cummins, who has returned home to get his back injury examined. If he gets approval from Cricket Australia, he can join again around April 17. Ishan Kishan is captaining the team in the absence of Cummins. He said, “Pat is missing, he has a lot of experience but Ishaan is doing a good job. I don’t think it is a big concern, we are in a safe position.” He said, “Kishan has been brilliant so far, he also asks for advice. His decisions and bowling changes are very good. He is not arrogant, so it is easy to play. I enjoyed playing under his captaincy.
Dhoni is no longer special as a player
Klaasen said that Chennai Super Kings is missing the captaincy of Mahendra Singh Dhoni but there has not been much difference as a wicketkeeper-batsman. Dhoni, who is probably playing his last IPL, has not yet played in the tournament for CSK as he is recovering from a calf injury. SRH will face CSK at home on April 18 and then play the return match in Chennai on May 18. He said, “CSK’s IPL record is excellent. Even without Dhoni, they are not weak. They are a very strong team. It will not be an easy match. They have always been a challenging team.” He said, “It does not matter much if Dhoni is not there, it depends on the other players.
Chennai team is dangerous
Due to absence of Dhoni, perhaps the crowd will remain a bit quiet. I don’t think his absence will have a big impact, except for his captaincy. In the last few years, he comes to play only 5-10 balls. Klaasen said that CSK’s batting line-up is good and they will have to bowl more dot balls. He said, “Shivam (Dubey) is in good form, both his openers (Sanju Samson and Ruturaj Gaikwad) are also excellent, we have to put him under a little more pressure.
playing spin is no longer a problem
Coming out to bat, the 34-year-old South African said that he likes the challenge of playing against the spinners. He said, “I have played a lot of four-day cricket, have also played a lot against spinners. I am used to playing against spin bowling. I have been coming to India for the last 5-6 years and have experience of playing spin. I have also played in Sri Lanka in the beginning of my career. I have got the skills to play against spin, but still it is a big challenge because the spinners are coming for me and I am going to play against them.”
