IPL 2018: SRH name Alex Hales as David Warner’s replacement

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Bengaluru, March 31: The Sunrisers Hyderabad named England’s explosive opener Alex Hales as David Warner’s replacement on Saturday. 29-year-old Hales was bought for his base price of INR 1 crore from the Registered and Available Player Pool (RAPP) list.

The attacking batsman is the first and only England player till date to score a T20I century. He is also the top-ranked English player and the only one to feature in the top-10 list of the ICC T20I rankings.

Earlier this week, Warner and Steve Smith were suspended from playing for Australia and also in the Australian domestic cricket for their part in the ball-tampering scandal during the South Africa series in Newlands. Both Warner and Smith along with Cameron Bancroft have the right to appeal. While Bancroft was banned for nine months, Warner and Smith was handed a one-year ban.

Following their suspension the duo stepped down from the captaincy of their respective Indian Premier League teams. While Ajinkya Rahane replaced Smith as Rajasthan Royals’ captain, New Zealand captain Kane Williamson replaced Warner as Sunrisers Hyderabad skipper. But the BCCI then went on and banned the Aussie duo from playing in the IPL altogether.

With Warner out, Hales got a chance to ply in trade in the IPL. Hales went unsold in the IPL auction but the 2016 champions moved swiftly to bring in the clean-striking 29-year-old - who has scored one Twenty20 international hundred and seven half-centuries.

Hales has 1456 runs in 52 T20Is, averaging 31.65 with a strike-rate of 136.32. Though the Englishman went unsold in the auction, this is not the first time he will be playing in the IPL. Back in 2015, Hales was called up by the Mumbai Indians as a replacement for injured Corey Anderson. And the Englishman will look to make the most of the opportunity and guide SRH home.