First Sports Exclusive: Irfan Pathan provides verdict on SRH's acquisition of Pat Cummins ahead of IPL 2024

Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan fails to understand the reason why Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) went for Australia skipper Pat Cummins for a whopping Rs 20.5 crores at the IPL 2024 player auction. Cummins, 30, ended up as one of the costliest buys of the IPL 2024 auction but Irfan Pathan feels that the Aussie may have been a bit overpriced. Recently, Cummins was announced as the skipper of SRH ahead of IPL 2024.

Pathan elaborated, saying that Cummins did not have an excellent record in T20Is for Australia or even in the IPL previously. Cummins’ last stint in the IPL was in 2022 when he turned up for Kolkata Knight Riders, when he picked up seven wickets from five matches. Last year, Cummins had opted to skip the IPL citing a hectic international schedule that included the World Test Championship final, the Ashes and the ODI World Cup.

“What I don’t understand is Pat Cummins going for 20 crores. Because if you look at it, in T20Is for Australia, he hasn’t done that great. If you look at his IPL numbers as well, he hasn’t done that well. Lot of people are mixing two things, one day cricket and T20 cricket,” Irfan Pathan told during an interview on First Sports show hosted by Rupha Ramani.

Overall, in T20Is, Cummins has taken just 57 wickets from 52 matches, with an economy rate of 7.43. He has also scored 144 runs from 24 innings in the shortest format for Australia. As far as his IPL career is concerned, Cummins has taken 45 wickets from 42 games and scored 379 runs.

Pathan felt Cummins is a great leader in ODIs for Australia but says he hasn’t performed upto expectations in T20s. “Yes, he has done greatly. Well, when it comes to leading the side of Australia, leading the 50-over format. He was fantastic and credit to the way he handled it. He can bat as well, I understand. But, he has not done that greatly in T20 cricket. Hyderabad went after him probably not just because of his skill but because of his leadership quality as well. So, SRH going after Cummins for 20 crore, err, I’m not too sure,” added the 39-year-old.

SRH, who finished in last place in IPL 2023, begin their IPL 2024 campaign against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens on 23 March.