Rohit’s defending champions Mumbai Indians will take on Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings in what will likely be a very exciting opening matchup here.
The tournament, which has moved to the United Arab Emirates due to more than five million Covid cases in India, is a ‘TV-only event’, expected to be enjoyed by all who crave cricket and Bollywood in equal measure during prime time. .
Bollywood had its share of prime time in recent months, but rest assured the next 53 days would belong to CSK of Dhoni, RCB of Kohli, and Mumbai Indians of Rohit challenged by young suitors including KL’s KXIP. Shreyas Iyer’s Rahul and Delhi Capitals, among others.
IPL taking place off foreign shores is not a new phenomenon, not even the switch to the Emirates, but as Indian sports hit the reset button with the billion dollar cricket spectacle, the event greatly popular to be held behind closed doors in a biosecure environment will be a new experience.
David Warner or Chris Gayle’s towering sixes greeted with artificial cheers from the crowd will be the new normal and deafening roars during Super Overs will be missing, but no one can complain, as at least the show will continue amid a devastating health crisis. .
A look at the teams would indicate that the Mumbai Indians are by far the most formidable with Rohit, the Pandya brothers – Hardik and Krunal – the indomitable Kieron Pollard and the bowling ‘King of Death’ Jasprit Bumrah giving him a look. threatening.
The eternal Chennai super kings of Daddy’s army can never be ruled out until that man with the ‘Hawk Eyes’ uses his peripheral vision behind the stumps.
Experience cannot be bought and people like Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis and Ravindra Jadeja have given their blood and sweat for the ‘Yellows’ and this time it would be no different.
For Kohli, winning a tournament as captain would reaffirm his status even when naysayers question his leadership style. The team is a little better with the presence of Aaron Finch, Chris Morris and the wonderfully gifted Devdutt Padikkal, who if all goes well, is destined to become a big name for years to come.
Delhi Capitals, with its new found vigor and more pragmatic new owners, found its mojo last year and would like to upgrade with an enormously talented skipper in Shreyas Iyer, who can be matched in skill by a Prithvi Shaw or a Rishabh Pant.
Seasoned brains like Ravichandran Ashwin would be the ideal complement to the team’s youthful exuberance.
KXIP’s KL Rahul is a class act and the way he is shaping up to be a leader could also create a narrative for the future when Indian cricket goes through another changing of the guard in the next few years.
There will be a lot of interest in how he handles players like Glenn Maxwell, Gayle and Mohammed Shami, who are wild in their days but may be normal in others.
Managing an inconsistent team to achieve a decent finish will be one of Rahul’s priorities.
The low-key Hyderabad Sunrisers will once again be looking for a spot in the summit clash and their patron David Warner knows how to win the IPL having always led the way with spectacular performances.
There’s the style of Jonny Bairstow, the poise of Kane Williamson, and the flamboyance of Rashid Khan with a host of youngsters like Virat Singh and Priyam Garg eager to make a name for themselves.
When the IPL was partially held in the UAE in 2014, KKR were the eventual champions.
If Ben Stokes is the best all-rounder in the world in all formats, Andre Russell is probably a bit more destructive in this format, as he hit 52 sixes during his horrendous last edition.
The stars of the 2018 U19 World Cup, Shubman Gill, Shivam Mavi and Kamlesh Nagarkoti, add a touch of youth. Eoin Morgan’s leadership skills that could come in handy should a normally inconsistent Dinesh Karthik fail.
Rajasthan Royals are the weakest team lacking in quality in the Indian lineup, but Jos Buttler, Steve Smith and Jofra Archer are expected to do the heavy lifting in Stokes’ absence. Stokes is currently in New Zealand to be with his sick father.
MI starts as a favorite in the first match against CSK
The Mumbai Indians are traditional slow starters in the IPL, but on paper, they will be the favorites against Chennai Super Kings in the opening game in Abu Dhabi.
MI seems the most primed and prepared team with a terrifying hitting lineup of Rohit, Quinton de Kock, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Hardik and Krunal Pandya, Kieron Pollard. Trent Boult and Nathan Coulter-Nile will complete their quota of foreigners.
For CSK, the core has remained the same except for Suresh Raina, who was their worst performance last year and retired citing personal reasons this year. His replacement, Ruturaj Gaikwad, remains in quarantine after testing positive for Covid-9 at least five times.
But there are Watson, Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja and Bravo, who have won matches in desperate situations. Mitchell Santner and Lungi Ngidi will round out their lineup of four foreigners in case Sam Curran and Josh Hazlewood are unavailable.
In case Curran is allowed to travel to Abu Dhabi, he could well be the pinch-hitter at the top of the order.
CSK can only be ignored at your own risk.
Statistical Highlights of IPL
Here’s a look at the statistical highlights of the event from previous editions:
EQUIPMENT:
#Royal Challengers Bangalore holds the record for amassing the highest totals in IPL history, scoring 263-5 and 248-3 against now defunct teams: Pune Warriors and Gujarat Lions respectively in 2013 and 2016. Chennai Super Kings are ranked third. List position with a score of 246-5 against Rajasthan Royals in 2010.
#RCB is also the team with the lowest total in IPL, having been fired by 49 by Kolkata Knight Riders in 2017, while RR and Delhi Daredevils (DD) are second and third on the list with totals of 58 and 66. against RCB and Mumbai. Indians in 2009 and 2017.
MI’s 146-race win over DD in 2017 is the largest in terms of race margin at IPL. RCB and KKR rank second and third with 144 races and 140 races over the Gujarat Lions and RCB in 2016 and 2008.
#Eight matches have been decided on the basis of Super Over with KKR involved in three of those draws, while RR has won two Super Over matches, the most in IPL. All eight teams participating in IPL 2020 have played at least one Super Over, but CSK and KKR have yet to win one.
#The dubious record for conceding the most extras in a game belongs to KKR, which gave away 28 to Deccan Chargers in 2008, followed by KXIP and CSK, who gave 27 and 26 extras to RCB and MI in 2011 and 2009.
WADDING:
#RCB skipper Virat Kohli is the highest-runner in IPL history, having racked up a total of 5,412 runs in the last 12 editions of the tournament. He is followed by Suresh Raina of Chennai Super Kings (5368) and the skipper of the Mumbai Indians, Rohit Sharma (4898).
West Indies hitter Chris Gayle, who will play for Kings XI Punjab, has hit a whopping 326 sixes in IPL to top the list of players with over sixes. RCB’s AB de Villiers and CSK’s Mahendra Singh Dhoni rank second and third with 357 and 297 sixes respectively.
#Gayle also posted the highest individual IPL score, racking up 175 66-ball undefeated against Pune Warriors in 2013, which is also the tournament’s fastest 100th in the tournament. Former Kolkata Knight Riders hitter and current coach Brendon McCullum (158 not out) and de Villiers (133 not out) are in the second and third positions on the highest scoring list, respectively.
#Gayle also holds the record for the most centuries, at six tons, followed by Kohli (5) and Sunrisers Hyderabad skipper David Warner (4), who has the most 50, a whopping 44.
#Kings XI Punjab captain KL Rahul with 51 of 14 balls against Delhi Capitals in 2018 is the fastest 50 in IPL, followed by the KKR duo of Yusuf Pathan and Sunil Narine, who accomplished the feat on 15 balls in 2014 and 2017 respectively.
BOWLING:
Lasith Malinga of # MI, who has chosen not to participate in this year’s IPL, is the one with the most innings in the IPL with 170 hairs in 122 games with an average of 19.8 and an economy of 7.14. They are followed by Amit Mishra (157) from Delhi Capitals and Harbhajan Singh (150) from CSK, who also withdrew citing personal reasons.
# MI’s Alzarri Joseph posted the best bowling figures in IPL, taking six wickets for 12 runs in 3.4 overs against Sunrisers Hyderabad last year. Former Rajasthan Royals pacemakers Sohail Tanvir and Adam Zampa, who played for the now-defunct Rising Pune Supergiants, also captured six wickets, giving away 14 and 19 runs against CSK and SRH in the 2008 and 2016 editions respectively.
# DC’s Amit Mishra has the most hat-tricks in the IPL. So far he has achieved three hat-tricks in 147 games. Former Mumbai Indians off-roader Yuvraj Singh and CSK’s Sam Curran occupy second and third places with two and one hat-tricks respectively.
Sunil Narine of # KKR holds the record for the most four-wicket sets. He took four wickets or more six times in 110 games with an economy of 6.67. Malinga, who also took six sets from four wickets, is in second place with an economy rate of 7.14.
# Former Indian sailor Praveen Kumar, who has played for various IPL teams, pitched 14 maidens in 119 matches, the most by a bowler in tournament history. Former pacemaker Irfan Pathan (10) and Dhawal Kulkarni (8) of the Mumbai Indians rank second and third on the list.
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