Abdul Samad is a welcome addition to the Sunrisers Hyderabad squad for the 2020 Indian Premier League – and has former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan to thank for getting him into the Hyderabad squad.
Samad has been in great form for Jammu and Kashmir at first-class and limited-overs level and was bought by the Sunrisers at late last year's IPL player auction.
He will be part of a Hyderabad squad that features a wealth of international talented like Kane Williamson of New Zealand, Jonny Bairstow of England, David Warner of Australia and others. When the individual batting markets for the IPL open, Samad will be right up there among the most popular bets alongside other Indian batting talent such as Manish Pandey and Shreevats Goswami.
For now, IPL bettors can look to the outright markets, where Bet365 are offering the Sunrisers at 5.00 for the title. Alternatively, four-time champions Mumbai are a good choice at the same price as Hyderabad.
Latest IPL 2020 Odds
| IPL Team | Winner Odds |
| Mumbai Indians | 5.0 |
| Hyderabad Sunrisers | 5.0 |
| Chennai Super Kings | 5.5 |
| Delhi Captials | 7.0 |
| Kolkata Knight Riders | 8.0 |
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | 8.0 |
| Rajasthan Royals | 10.0 |
| Kings XI Punjab | 11.0 |
“What caught my eye was his ability to bat on the up and also along the ground on a dry surface, where senior batsmen were struggling. The ball was keeping low, but here I saw rookie Samad batting without any trouble,” Pathan told Times of India about the 18-year-old Samad's talent at a training camp.
“I immediately checked his scores in the junior circuit. I was very impressed. I wanted to test him in the shorter format of game. So, during Syed Mushtaq Ali 2018-19 season, he debuted against Nagaland and smacked an unbeaten 76 of 51 balls, helping us win the match comfortably.
“There is no doubt he is a work in progress but a couple of things make him an exciting prospect. First, he can bat anywhere and can hit sixes at will. He is a good wrist spinner too. He has got a sharp googly and bowls very accurately for a part-timer.”
Sunrisers Hyderabad 2020 Squad
| Kane Williamson (C) | Manish Pandey |
| David Warner | Rashid Khan |
| Khaleel Ahmed | Bhuvneshwar Kumar |
| Sandeep Sharma | Siddharth Kaul |
| Billy Stanlake | T Natarajan |
| Abhishek Sharma | Vijay Shankar |
| Mohammad Nabi | Shahbaz Nadeem |
| Shreevats Goswami | Wriddhiman Saha |
| Jonny Bairstow | Priyam Garg |
| Mitchell Marsh | Virat Singh |
| Abdul Samad | Sanjay Yadav |
| Sandeep Banvanaka | Fabian Allen |
Future bright for Abdul Samad at Sunrisers
Samad has enjoyed being mentored by Pathan, who played 120 ODIs for India – and boasts experience in the IPL with the Delhi Daredevils (since renamed the Delhi Capitals), Kings XI Punjab, Sunrisers Hyderabad, Chennai Super Kings and Rising Pune Supergiants. Samad bowls some leg-spin, too, which might even see him placed in the IPL bowler markets too alongside fellow leg-spinner and Hyderabad team-mate Rashid Khan from Afghanistan.
“I owe everything to Irfan sir. Irfan Pathan joining Jammu and Kashmir has been the icing on the cake. I don't think I could have made it this far. He has helped me a lot and has backed me from the word go,” said Samad.
