With batting milestones tumbling and strike-rate pressure showing no sign of easing, IPL 2026 continues to tilt firmly in favour of batters. Even a daunting chase of 265 has been reached comfortably, and on a day Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) made the successful pursuit of 244 against Mumbai Indians (MI) look routine, SRH\u2019s spin-bowling coach Muthiah Muralidaran delivered a blunt message: bowlers can\u2019t spend too long fighting the reality of being hit\u2014they have to accept it, then adjust.<\/p>\n
Speaking at the press conference after the match, Muralidaran said the modern opening mindset has transformed the early overs. \u201cIt\u2019s very difficult for a bowler these days because every team, not only us [SRH], has an opening pair that doesn\u2019t care about going in or out. They just attack the bowling,\u201d he explained. He also pointed to how quickly scoring expectations have risen. \u201cWhen we used to play, if you got around 40 to 50 runs with one wicket down in six overs, that was considered a good situation. Now the average is 70 to 80.\u201d<\/p>\n
Muralidaran linked that leap to the fearless approach of younger batters, using uncapped 23-year-old Salil Arora as a case study. He highlighted Arora\u2019s no-look six off Jasprit Bumrah, arguing that the game\u2019s psychology has shifted from survival to statement-making. The moment a youngster can play a shot like that\u2014especially against a bowler of Bumrah\u2019s calibre\u2014captures how quickly confidence has spread across the batting ranks.<\/p>\n
\u201cEven a good bowler goes for a six. Even Bumrah goes for a six or one or two balls,\u201d Muralidaran said. \u201cAbhishek [Sharma], the way he hits, it\u2019s unbelievable. But when a new boy like Salil hits a six, it\u2019s unbelievable too\u2014you don\u2019t expect someone with the calibre of Bumrah to be dispatched like that, because you think, \u2018How am I going to survive [Bumrah]?\u2019 But nowadays it\u2019s different. Now it\u2019s about how am I going to hit a six. That\u2019s their approach.\u201d<\/p>\n
He added that this attitude has been reinforced by what players have seen and learned. \u201cConfidence levels have gone up because people have shown this is the way to play the modern game, and youngsters are following that.\u201d<\/p>\n
For bowlers, the coach\u2019s prescription was straightforward: repetition, precision, and a willingness to absorb damage on days when conditions and rhythm favour the batters. \u201cSo for bowlers there isn\u2019t much to say\u2014they have to practise a lot and be as accurate as possible. On your day you might do well, but even if you do well sometimes you end up being on the receiving end because of the wicket and the conditions,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Muralidaran then turned to a wider development problem\u2014how spin is taught at the grassroots. While he stressed that spin remains an important weapon, he suggested the coaching pathway for spinners needs a rethink because the modern game is producing fewer bowlers who can genuinely turn the ball. \u201cSpinners only try to bowl quicker and not try to spin it,\u201d he said. \u201cBecause they aren\u2019t getting that ability from a young age, you can\u2019t come to [Under-19s] and try to spin the ball. Their muscle memory is already there, so you can\u2019t get that back.\u201d<\/p>\n
He argued that the focus should begin much earlier, around the pre-teen years, when technique can be shaped rather than corrected. \u201cSo when you are age 10, 11, 12, try to spin. We need to spin to beat the bat,\u201d Muralidaran said. \u201cBut if you can\u2019t spin, you see in training how batters [face] throwdowns and hit sixes. It looks like a throwdown bowler bowling at you, and batters are getting into the line and hitting.\u201d<\/p>\n
In his view, the visual cues matter as much as the deliveries themselves. \u201cSo if you spin, their eyes also open,\u201d he added. \u201cThey say, \u2018Oh it\u2019s spinning, so I\u2019m missing it.\u2019 They start thinking about which way it\u2019s going to spin.\u201d<\/p>\n
Asked how he and Shane Warne would have handled today\u2019s pitches, Muralidaran offered perspective on both capability and limitations across eras. \u201cWe would have turned the ball, but we would not have made a big dent,\u201d he said. \u201cWe would have turned it, we could have got like one or two wickets, maybe they would have scored 40 runs easily, because wickets are so good and you need about three or four bowlers like that to contain [the total] to less than 200.\u201d<\/p>\n
He contrasted the T20 era he played in with the present explosion in power-hitting. \u201cI have played about 170 T20 games, but at that time the power wasn\u2019t as great as now. When we bowled, I would have been hammered only two times over 60-odd games \u2014 maybe more than 40 runs. Shane also the same,\u201d he said. \u201cNowadays, conceding 50 runs is a great deal for a spinner, 40 runs means you\u2019ve bowled well. The game has changed, we can\u2019t compare the eras.\u201d<\/p>\n
With so much emphasis on batting, the question becomes whether the IPL can strike a balance between bat and ball. Muralidaran acknowledged the challenge and pointed to the format\u2019s commercial and entertainment foundations. He noted that SRH, who have produced top-four totals in the league over the years, are unlikely to abandon the style that has defined their recent success. \u201cI don\u2019t think pushing the boundary ropes, when the ball is flying over the ropes everywhere, will change things,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Instead, he suggested that altering the spectacle would come with a risk of backlash from fans. \u201cI think if we give fair wickets, the spectators will say it\u2019s become boring because T20 followers want entertainment, so they want to see fours and sixes,\u201d Muralidaran explained. \u201cThat\u2019s why the tournament is built like that\u2014an extra player to come and bat [impact player]. It is a big business at the moment, sponsors and everything, so you will lose the sponsors and interest of the people if you change it.\u201d<\/p>\n
Looking ahead, he believes the contest will keep evolving rather than collapsing into a single solution. \u201cI think this will continue, but over a period, bowlers will try to adapt. It will take some time,\u201d he said. \u201cSunrisers started this [power-hitting] and now everyone is adapting, so now the bowlers will go back [from] this tournament and figure out how we can contain. They will come up with something, and the batsmen will find something else\u2014this is the way the modern cricketers are going.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
With batting milestones tumbling and strike-rate pressure showing no sign of easing, IPL 2026 continues to tilt firmly in favour of batters. Even a daunting…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":6366,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"IPL 2026: Muralidaran Says Fair Contests Key for Bowlers","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"IPL 2026 is turning batter-friendly fast: Muralidaran says bowlers must embrace fair contests, adapt quickly, and stop over-fighting hit pressure.","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-6367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"\n