Respect conditions: Daniel Vettori's message to SRH batters after another flop show in IPL 2025

Hyderabad's belligerent batters continued to misfire as the Sunrisers fell to their fourth defeat on the trot in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). With their bats resorting to silence and 'Miyaan Magic' mesmerising the spectators, Hyderabad packed their bags on 152/8 in 20 overs. In reply, the Titans gunned down the target in a mere 16.4 overs and emerged triumphant with seven wickets.

"I think we know the style is going to work, but we have to respect conditions, and we have to assess really well, and that's probably something we haven't done. Also, [we] have to respect how well other teams are bowling, putting a lot of planning into our top three, and they haven't been able to execute it at times," Vettori said in the post-match press conference, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo.

Vettori felt the turf on Sunday wasn't a typical Hyderabad surface. According to him, the slow and "tough" conditions made it a mounting task for the batters to reach the 160-170 total they were striving for.

"I think they saw that the wicket was really tough, and the assessment coming back was 160-170 would be a good score, which is what we anticipated at the start of the day. So we knew that those guys, if they could get themselves in, build a partnership and then hopefully attack the back end, and we were pretty close to that in the end," he said.

"We needed 20 more runs to put the pressure on and then obviously bowl really well. But I think their [GT's] understanding of what was required was spot on," he added.

Sunrisers sang harmoniously after tonking a 286/6 against the Rajasthan Royals in their campaign opener. However, Hyderabad lost its muse and has been on a downhill path, struggling to present a collective piece of their performances that come in patches.

Despite four successive defeats, Vettori doesn't feel the panic button has been hit in his camp. But he understands the ramifications of their current situation and the need to return to winning ways in their upcoming fixtures.

"I don't think Pat [Cummins] has ever panicked in his life, and I think I'm pretty similar. But we understand the ramifications of losing four in a row and how difficult it makes the season. It's tough because obviously you come into the season with high expectations after [finishing as runners-up] last year and then a very good start," he said.

But we just haven't been near our best in the last four games. I think that's all three disciplines. I think the barometer of most teams is how their fielding's going, and we've been pretty poor in the field. So those will be the work-ons between now and the Punjab game. And we know that if we can get on a roll, then we're still a very good team. We're just not performing the way that we should be," he added.

While the focus on the Sunrisers in the 18th edition has been on their beleaguered batters, Vettori sees it differently. The former New Zealand spinner believes his side needs a lift in all three spectrums of the game.

"We haven't been able to click in a game. We look back to last year, and our skills were putting big scores on and then sort of holding on for dear life with the ball," he said. "But we haven't been able to put those big scores together through a combination of things," he said.

"The good thing about the IPL is there are quick turnarounds, there are opportunities to do well, and there are individual performances within those games. So I think there's still some confidence within the batting group, but it's the collective that needs to stand up now," he added.