1. Absence of Jonny Bairstow
The England opener had decided to give the second phase of the IPL 2021 a skip for personal reasons. But the Sunrisers Hyderabad could not cope with his absence at the opening slot. Bairstow was their top-scorer in the first leg with 248 runs from 7 matches with two fifties. The SRH sorrily missed his firepower at the top and, perhaps, his presence would have helped them to stay afloat in these close matches.
2. Williamson and Warner disappoint
Skipper Kane Williamson and former captain and opener David Warner did not fire when it was actually needed. Williamson made 147 runs from six matches but 66 of those runs came in one match and the next five matches produced only 81 runs. Warner too presented a similar case. He made two fifties in eight matches and made 195 runs but once the IPL 2021 resumed, the Australian was totally off colour and out for low scores in two matches in the UAE, severely impacting their chances in the IPL 2021.
3. Experienced India stars falter
The Sunrisers Hyderabad might have pinned a lot of hopes on experienced India stars Bhuvneshwar Kumar, their former captain, and all-rounder Vijay Shankar. But both came a cropper in IPL 2021. Bhuvi played 7 matches out of a total 9 and made just 25 runs and managed to take only 4 wickets. The pacer also gave runs aplenty - his economy standing at 8.76.
Vijay, who missed the last two matches because being in isolation after coming to contact with Covid-19 positive T Natarajan, too stumbled with both bat and ball. From 7 matches, Vijay made 58 runs and picked up only 3 wickets and gave away more than 9 runs per over. The pair's underwhelming efforts had a massive impact on Sunrisers Hyderabad.
4. Faltering Khaleel Ahmed
T Natarajan could play only two matches in the IPL 2021 as he was limped off in the first phase with a leg injury. He might have returned to the SRH fold with great hope but a Covid 19 positive test put paid to his hopes. In his absence, SRH pinned hopes on another left-arm bowler Khaleel Ahmed but all the pacer managed was 4 wickets from 7 matches and conceded more than 8 runs per over. Even others like Sandeep Sharma and Siddharth Kaul too disappointed as they struggled to take wickets.