Sunrisers Hyderabad have named Australia skipper Pat Cummins as captain for the 2024 season, the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise said on Monday.

Cummins, who has previously played for the Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Capitals, returns to the IPL after a season's absence, having skipped the tournament in 2023 to manage a heavy international schedule.

The 30-year-old was signed by Hyderabad in the player's auction in December for $2.46 million and briefly held the record for most expensive player in IPL history before being overtaken by compatriot Mitchell Starc.

Cummins replaces South African Aiden Markram as captain.

Hyderabad, who finished bottom of the standings in 2023, get their new campaign underway against Kolkata on March 23.

(Reporting by Aadi Nair in Bengaluru; Editing by Peter Rutherford )