Even though the Sunrisers Hyderabad are without their mainstay skipper Pat Cummins for the initial few weeks of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026, head coach Daniel Vettori doesn’t feel that his absence is a point of concern in the dressing room. Since Ishan Kishan is leading the side in Cummins’ absence, Vettori knows that the style of leadership between the two may differ, but the mindset to win remains.
Ahead of their second league stage game against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, the SRH head coach revealed that Cummins and Kishan are already having a lot of chats regarding leadership and shaping the team for the road to their second IPL title.
“We’re fortunate enough that Pat has been around the group and he’s been able to have conversations with Ishan about his captaincy style. But Ishan has been highly successful in his captaincy career so far. So whilst it can be slightly different, we don’t look at [no Pat Cummins on the field] as a negative at all [from the point of view of captaincy],” Vettori was quoted as saying by ESPNcricinfo.
For the unversed, Kishan was Jharkhand’s captain in their victorious Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy run in 2025, and was also the highest run-getter of the tournament. According to Vettori, this leadership style brings the best out of someone like Kishan. The former New Zealand international has full belief in Kishan’s effectiveness as SRH’s captain for the time being.
“As you saw by Ishan‘s performance in the first game, he loves leadership; he loves being out there, and I think it can have a real positive effect on his batting and keeping. As he gets to understand the group and the dynamic, he’s going to put his mark on it and I have no doubt that he will be a very effective leader for us,” Vettori mentioned.
“He has been around for a long time, even though he’s so young, but he has a real confidence in his game and I think that’s born out of the success [with Jharkhand] in the Syed Mushtaq Ali tournament, being re-selected for India, and the success with India,” he added further.
SRH will take on their finalists from IPL 2024 on Thursday, April 02, at the iconic venue of the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. SRH lost their opening match against Royal Challengers Bengaluru, while Mumbai Indians thumped the Ajinkya Rahane-led side. The fixture is set to be a night affair, with both teams looking to get off the mark on the points table.
