Follow UsIt was always a matter of when, not if, that surrounded Sai Sudharsan.
Growing up in Chennai’s cricketing circle, he was the ‘next big thing’.
He wasn’t good, he was bloody damn good. But even the biggest of talents always have some sort of caveat around them, and in Sudharsan’s case, it was his power-hitting game. Till the 2023 IPL, across his nine appearances, the left-hander struggled massively in the powerplay, striking at 114.9.
Read: No more just a prodigy, Sai Sudharsan aims to fulfill potential
Furthermore, poor powerplay numbers in IPL 2024 further intensified those discussions, as he was pigeonholed as a run accumulator, with a strike rate of 115.5.
When Gujarat Titans shelled out INR 15.75 crore for Jos Buttler, everyone were all but convinced that Buttler was going to open ahead of Sudharsan. Guess why? Ermmmm, Sudharsan’s strike rate.
But with over 679 runs at a strike rate of 155.37, Sudharsan hasn’t just proved everyone wrong but has drastically changed his game.
While the conscious change started during the COVID-19 break, it wasn’t until earlier this year that everything changed for Sudharsan, the T20 batter. The elegant left-hander reached out to power-hitting coach Shanon Young, and that’s where his game completely transformed for the better.
"He [Sudharsan] has a really stable base, and I was surprised when he came in; he's quite tall. I don't know his actual height, maybe six feet two inches [just over six feet],” Young told Times of India.
“The interesting thing with that is he bats tall. When he generates power through his hands via the backlift, his base is stable, and he doesn't have to do anything else to generate that power. So he can do it through a stable base, and then he uses the ground well, resulting in a fluent bat swing," he further added.
It is exactly what has helped him become a better power player.
In terms of providing GT the much-needed stability at the top of the order, Sudharsan is absolutely on top of his game. Across the 14 group-stage games, the left-hander has the second-most runs in the powerplay stage this year, with 359 runs, and only getting out on three occasions inside the first six overs.
"Abhishek Sharma, Travis Head, Fraser-McGurk — they're playing high-risk cricket. The returns are high, but the risk is also high. Now, Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan at GT are minimising the risk by playing traditional cricket shots but with high impact," Young added.
The fact that Sudharsan is providing that stability with such power is what has made his 2025 IPL stand out, with a strike rate (in the powerplay) much better than that of his batting partner and GT’s poster boy, Shubman Gill.
You can see it in the way he’s coming out of the blocks.
Across this season, in the powerplay phase alone, the left-handed averages 100, and has been striking at 149.3 in his first 10 balls, which means that he isn’t starting slow (by any means). He’s barely been dismissed during that phase, making it tougher for the bowlers, as his strike rate jumps to 154.31 over the next ten balls.
But what’s the most impressive part about his game is that despite a lack of six-hitting skills, he makes it up with his effortless boundary percentage and third-best dot-ball percentage (33.9) inside the powerplay.
No batter in IPL 2025 has scored more boundaries (98) than Sudharsan, and even when it comes to six-hitting, he’s eighth on the list, with 22 sixes. While he’s no means explosive as someone like Vaibhav Suryavanshi, Abhishek Sharma or Priyansh Arya, he’s still scoring a boundary every 4.5 deliveries, showing his intent.
But what’s the caveat?
Well, there aren’t too many, as the left-hander is as prolific against pace (54.75 avg & 155.87 SR) as against spin (48.2 avg & 154.49 SR).
With all the match-ups going on too, there isn’t too much that has affected Sudharsan, with an average of over 40 against all types of bowling this year (except for left-arm unorthodox), and at a strike rate of well above 150.
You could see it in the clash against Delhi Capitals earlier this season, where apart from Kuldeep Yadav, the left-hander remained largely unperturbed during his stay at the crease, where he smashed an unbeaten 108.
Maybe there’s some weakness with the lengths?
Well not. Sudharsan's ability to manoeuvre any length has made a huge impact on his season strike rate. One thing that used to trouble him during his early playing days was the short ball, and he’s worked on that aspect of his game brilliantly, with a strike rate of 165 against such deliveries.
On top of that, the addition of a paddle scoop has widened his range, with nearly 20% of his all IPL 2025 runs coming behind the wicket, which increases to 23% (against just pacers). It shows his ability to learn, adapt and certainly execute.
Sudharsan being on the lips of every Indian fan right now is no coincidence or a game of luck; he’s worked every hard yard up to the top of the Indian cricketing ladder.
“I realised that I’d have to push myself more; be a bit more explosive. So I went home and worked on the mindset of it," he had said.
It all started with a small yet big realisation: be a bit more explosive. Once the realisation kicked in and the mindset changed, Sudharsan’s true potential started getting unlocked.
With a second trophy on the line, Gujarat need him more than ever, especially in Buttler’s absence. He’s already contributing 25.2% to all Gujarat runs, and now, without Buttler, that figure might have to go up significantly.
If they lift the trophy, all praise will rightly be showered on him, and equally if they fail, all the season’s good yards will be forgotten in due time. But one thing that you can’t say is that Sudharsan is at the top level (Indian cap) by coincidence or luck, as he's deserved it at every step of the way.