Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) has appointed Varun Aaron, a former India fast bowler, as their new bowling coach ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 season. On July 14, the franchise confirmed the news with a social media post.
Aaron succeeds former New Zealand all-rounder James Franklin, who held the position for the 2024 and 2025 IPL seasons. Under Franklin’s leadership, SRH finished second in 2024 but failed to repeat their performance in 2025, finishing sixth. Despite scoring the highest total in the competition (286/6 against the Rajasthan Royals in their first game), SRH struggled with their bowling throughout the season.
Meanwhile, Aaron, 35, a product of the MRF Pace Foundation, was one of India’s fastest bowlers in the early 2010. However, several stress fractures hampered his international career, limiting him to only 18 matches, including nine Tests and nine One-Day Internationals, in which he took 29 wickets.
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Varun Aaron represented six IPL teams during his playing career
Notably, one of Aaron’s most memorable moments came during the 2014 England tour, where his bouncer hit Stuart Broad and left the England bowler with a broken nose. Despite his stop-start international career, Aaron enjoyed a decade-long IPL career, representing six franchises (Delhi Daredevils, Kings XI Punjab, Kolkata Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, and Gujarat Titans). He played 52 IPL matches and bagged 44 wickets at an economy rate of 8.93. His final season came with the Gujarat Titans in 2022, where he was part of their title-winning squad.
Post-retirement, Aaron has transitioned into media and mentorship roles. After announcing his retirement from representative cricket in January 2025, he worked as a cricket expert and took up the role of a consultant at the MRF Pace Academy in Chennai.
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