‘Rahul Dravid won on the principles of cricket and principles of life’: Aussie legend's ultimate praise for India's World Cup-winning coach
'Aren't Aussies known to take up challenges head on?': Kaif slams SRH team management for protecting Travis Head against Mitchell Starc
Mohammad Kaif was not happy with SRH opener Abhishek Sharma facing the first ball of the IPL 2024 final instead of Travis Head against KKR's Mitchell Starc.
!['Aren't Aussies known to take up challenges head on?': Kaif slams SRH team management for protecting Travis Head against Mitchell Starc Vaibhav Arora celebrates Travis Head's wicket in IPL 2024 final (Getty Images)](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240526T152907446Z886314/20240526T152907446Z886314_400_225.webp?width=180&quality=60)
Former Indian cricketer-turned-commentator Mohammad Kaif has slammed Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) team management for protecting Travis Head against Mitchell Starc. Head has struggled against Starc with the new ball and was dismissed for a duck in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 Qualifier 1. In the final, he did not take the strike against Starc. His opening partner Abhishek Sharma faced the Australian left-arm pacer in the first over and got bowled on the fifth delivery.
Kaif slammed SRH team management for the ‘defensive tactic’ and questioned the Australian batter for trying to avoid the challenge.
“For final Abhishek taking first strike, and not Head, was a defensive tactic. Starc has got Head out in the past but aren't the Aussies known to take up challenges head on? Wrong move SRH,” Kaif wrote on X.
Before the IPL 2024 final, Head had admitted that he has struggled against Starc.
“We have had our battles over the years and he's won a fair few of them, hopefully knock the shine off him tonight and then we get off to a good start,” he told the broadcasters.
After Abhishek got bowled for a single-digit score, Head could not do well either. He was dismissed off the first ball bowled by Vaibhav Arora. The Australian southpaw edged one to the wicketkeeper Rahmanullah Gurbaz.
SRH’s destructive opening pair failed for the third time in IPL 2024 playoffs. Head departed for a duck agianst Starc. In the Qualifier 2, he contributed with a 34-run knock. Meanwhile, Abhishek departed for a single-digit score against KKR and 12 runs against RR in Qualifier 2.
SRH suffer batting collapse
Earlier, Cummins won the toss and opted to bat first. With the new ball, Starc got the wicket of Rahul Tripathi in the fifth over. SRH managed to post 40/3 in powerplay overs. This was their second-lowest powerplay score.
The wickets kept falling and Harshit Rana got the wicket of Nitish Reddy in the seventh over. Aiden Markram failed to make a mark as well. He departed for a 23-ball 20. SRH lost half their side for 62 in the 11th over.
MORE ON SPORTS TAK:
T20 World Cup 2024: Virat Kohli likely to miss warm-up game against Bangladesh - Check the reason
Popular Posts
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T152528505Z248324/20240907T152528505Z248324_400_225.webp)
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T144703456Z538996/20240907T144703456Z538996_400_225.webp)
Watch: Avesh Khan creates buzz with aggressive send-off to Sarfaraz Khan after dismissing him for 46 during Duleep Trophy match
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T140143333Z400035/20240907T140143333Z400035_400_225.webp)
South Africa and Australia legends in talks with Kolkata franchise to replace Gautam Gambhir as KKR mentor: Reports
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T131822379Z213217/20240907T131822379Z213217_400_225.webp)
Duleep Trophy 2024: Rishabh Pant marks red-ball return with fiery fifty to help India B notch fighting lead over India A
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T122524142Z875855/20240907T122524142Z875855_400_225.webp)
'Toughest rivalry. The challenge is huge...': Aussie star wary of 'Team India' challenge ahead of Border-Gavaskar Trophy showdown
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T111924982Z453867/20240907T111924982Z453867_400_225.webp)
Kane Williamson is a big fan of this superstar batter amongst 'Fav Four', says 'He has been something else for a long period of time'
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T104033613Z230087/20240907T104033613Z230087_400_225.webp)
Duleep Trophy 2024: India C ride on Manav Suthar's 7-wicket haul to rock Shreyas Iyer's India D by four wickets in opening round
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T103105028Z198623/20240907T103105028Z198623_400_225.webp)
Former star spinner wants Gautam Gambhir-like head coach for Pakistan amidst cricket fiasco in country, says 'he doesn't go back and do backbiting...'
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T101559213Z966263/20240907T101559213Z966263_400_225.webp)
Ex-India cricketer's bold statement on Virat Kohli's weakness against spin, says '...you'll need to upgrade yourself'
![](https://image.thesportstak.com/images/cms/articles/20240907T092008980Z747103/20240907T092008980Z747103_400_225.webp)
'Show officials Musheer Khan's innings': Ex-Cricketer slams Pakistan Cricket Board for 'waste of money' Champions Cup 2024