IPL 2021: Sunrisers Hyderabad deserved to lose against Mumbai Indians, says Sanjay Manjrekar

Cricketer-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar has slammed Sunrisers Hyderabad's team selection, saying they deserved to lose against Mumbai Indians

(MI) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 on Saturday.

Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) failed to chase down MI's target of 151 as they fell short by 13 runs at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai.

Manjrekar took to Twitter to point out that SRH deserved to lose as they had three young players together in the playing XI: Abhishek Sharma, Virat Singh, and Abdul Samad.

"Sorry to say, but anyone that picks Abhishek Sharma, Virat Singh and Abdul Samad all together in one playing XI do not deserve to win," Manjrekar tweeted.

On Saturday, MI won the toss and opted to bat. SRH bowlers restricted the defending champions to 150 for 5 in 20 overs. In reply to that, SRH openers David Warner and Jonny Bairstow provided the Orange Army with a flying start. The two put up 67 runs for the first wicket before Bairtsow's quick-fire knock was brought to an end by Krunal Pandya. Bairstow scored 43 off 22.

The following over, SRH lost Manish Pandey for a seven-ball two before Warner was run out by Hardik Pandya. Virat Singh (11), Abhishek Sharma (2) and Abdul Samad (7) departed without any major contribution as SRH suffered their third consecutive loss in the IPL 2021.

SRH are still yet to play experienced Kedar Jadhav and New Zealand skipper Kane Williamson, who is reportedly yet to regain full match fitness.

During the post-match interview on Saturday, Warner expressed displeasure with his team's batting.

"I don't know how to take that. Obviously disappointing. Two of us were set but it proves that if you don't bat deep, you can't win. If you get a partnership and if there is one person at the end, you can chase it down. These scores are very chase-able, it's just poor batting. The guys need to play smart cricket in the middle. The bowlers have been fantastic. You have to learn from mistakes and right now it is just the batsmen. It's our responsibility at the top to bat deep," the SRH captain said.

SRH have batted second in all the games so far in the IPL 2021. After coming close to a victory, Warner's side has suffered a batting collapse in all three matches. The 2016 champions are the only side to not have won a game yet in the ongoing tournament and as a result, they are currently placed at the bottom of the points table.

SRH's next fixture is against Punjab Kings (PBKS) on April 21 in Chennai.