IPL 2020 — A Preview
With the COVID-19 pandemic causing a delay in the start of cricket’s one of the most-watched formats, the Indian Premier League, the uncertainty has been settled and we are good to go for this year’s edition, which is set to begin tomorrow. Sharjah cricket stadium will host the much-awaited replay of the 2019 finals. All eyes will be on M.S.Dhoni as he leads CSK for the 11th season. CSK’s fierce rivals Mumbai Indians will look to break their curse of losing in the even years. Royal Challengers Bangalore is another team that boasts a competitive squad, with the addition of Aaron Finch and Chris Morris. Hence, expectations are skyrocketing on Virat, leading RCB to their first-ever IPL title.
We at Fandemic present to you our predictions about each team, the probable playing XI, the key players, X factors and Surprise picks, after a lot of number-crunching and stats analysis. So cricket fans, grab a seat and get yourself enough snacks as we witness eight teams clash head-to-head tomorrow for the ultimate goal, The IPL-2020 title. Let the games begin!
Royal Challengers Bangalore:
Clutching for that elusive IPL trophy, Virat Kohli’s men would be looking to give it their everything to drive RCB for their first ever IPL victory. While RCB seemed to have a strong batting unit in the previous seasons, the likes of Chris Morris, Dale Steyn and Adam Zampa would make Bangalore one of the balanced sides in this edition of the game. IPL, being the shortest format of the game, values batting lineup more than bowling and RCB has one of the strongest top order in the league. Virat Kohli and AB would be looking to make a mark and bring home the much-contested trophy at least this year. The addition of Aaron Finch to the attack means we can expect a stellar display from RCB.
As the season progresses, there are high chances for the spotlight to fall on Y.Chahal, M.Ali and W.Sundar to do their jobs on the spinning track. Yadav, Morris and Saini would further strengthen the bowling attack. The quickies should be looking to contain runs, something which has been proven time and again, to be this team’s Achilles’ heel (given the fact that Yadav has the worst death economy in the league).
With strong, aggressive and experienced players by his side, Kohli would be looking to prove to the cricketing world that RCB is a force not to be messed with. Having faltered in the finals thrice before, RCB would be looking to dispel their bad luck and they have just the firepower to do that.
X-Factor: Chris Morris. While Kohli and AB are certainly important pieces of the cog, Chris Morris would play a major role, both with the ball and the bat.
Probable XI:
1. Virat Kohli
2. Aaron Finch
3. AB de Villiers
4. Parthiv Patel/ Padikkal
5. Moeen Ali
6. Washington Sundar
7. Shivan Dube
8. Chris Morris
9. Yuzvendra Chahal
10. Umesh Yadav
11. Navdeep Saini
Surprise Picks: AB de Villiers was seen practicing with his keeping gloves. This could mean he could take over Parthiv’s keeping duties, opening up an opportunity for the skipper to opt for Padikkal to open the innings with Finch. If Finch does not deliver as expected, that could make way for Adam Zampa to bolster the spin attack.
Mumbai Indians:
Defending champions and the most crowned team in the IPL would be looking to continue their domination in this year’s campaign. With a solid batting lineup, the only thing that could hinder Mumbai’s chances this season is their lack of depth in the spin bowling department. With spinners touted to play a key role in UAE pitches, the lack of a quality spin attack could be Mumbai’s weakness. With Malinga backing out from the tournament, Mumbai would be placing their bets on Bumrah and new addition Trent Boult to deliver.
Having never won a game in UAE, the defending champions would be looking to start their campaign on the right note by continuing to sustain their wins against CSK. Rohit and his men would be looking for an encore of last year’s campaign.
X-Factor: Hardik Pandya. The all-rounder would be expected to deliver with both the ball and the bat and we know he’s a proven match winner. After a hiatus from cricket due to a back injury, Pandya would be raging to establish his prowess in UAE.
Probable XI:
1. Rohit Sharma
2. Chris Lynn
3. Quinton de Kock
4. Surya Kumar Yadav
5. Ishan Kishan
6. Kieron Pollard
7. Hardik Pandya
8. Krunal Pandya
9. Trent Boult/ Nathan Coulter-Nile
10. Jasprit Bumrah
11. Rahul Chahar
Surprise Picks: With the absence of Malinga, Coulter-Nile can expect to have quite more innings to prove his mettle. The 4th foreigner pick would come down to Boult or Coulter-Nile.
Rajasthan Royals:.
Since RR hasn’t been performing well in the last few seasons, they will look to improve their performance in all aspects and pave a way for themselves to the play-offs. Stokes not being available is a great setback for RR. Butler,Smith & Archer are likely to play all games.
Shreyas Gopal and Markande both being leg-spinners, the team is set to have a one-dimensional spin attack. Plus, there’s only left arm spinner Lormor, who also doesn’t have enough of an experience. For the 6th bowling option, they have to choose another pure bowler in the place of Jaiswal/Robbie, which is a gamble they need to take as it puts the batting unit at stake, which is the most important aspect in T20 cricket.
Probable XI:
1. Y.Jaiswal
2. Jos Butler
3. Samson
4. Smith
5. Robbie
6. Riyan Parag
7. Tom Curran/Miller
8. Shreyas Gopal
9. Unadkat
10.Archer
11. Rajpoot/Markande/Varun Aaron/Lormor
X-Factor: Jos Butler. With Rahane’s transfer to DC, Butler ought to shoulder more responsibilities at the top of the order and would be a crucial cog in the RR’s batting line up. He has been one of the most consistent performers from RR in the IPL and has scored more than 850 runs in the last two seasons, with an effective strike-rate of 150. He plays both spin and pace equally well and can score boundaries, no matter which stage of the game it is.
Surprise picks: Picking the 4th overseas player would be a real challenge. If Miller plays, then getting in overs from the 5th bowler would be a must. If Tom Curran plays, then it does look slightly balanced with Gopal, Markande, Archer & Unadkat, making it a total of 5 bowlers.
Kolkata Knight Riders:
With Narine & Russ are sure starters, it will be sort of a challenge in determining the team combination with only 4 overseas players allowed. If Morgan plays too, which is most likely to happen, they can have only one player from Pat C/Lockie/Ali Khan. Pat C/Lockie would be rotated to ensure that they are injury free. Morgan’s place seems to be the only one they can use, in terms of choosing the right combo. With Morgan, bowling looks slightly inexperienced & without him, batting in the middle order is a challenge. Most importantly, if Russel, Morgan, Rana and DK play in positions 3–6 respectively, then it gives a strong left-right combo. This puts KKR as a very tough hurdle for teams with wrist/left arm spinners.
Probable XI:
1. S.Gill
2. Narine
3. Rana
4. Andre Russel
5. Morgan
6. DK
7. Tripathi/Rinku
8. P.Cummins/Ferguson
9. Kuldeep
10. Prasidh
11. Sandeep/Varun/Shivam
X-Factor: Sunil Narine. While Andre Russel has made more impact for the Knight Riders in recent years, the spin tracks of UAE would warrant Narine’s spin shenanigans to save the day. He is the highest wicket taker in IPL, in the UAE, with 9 scalps when the league was played here in 2014. Certainly a hard hitter, Narine’s contributions with the bat could be just as useful as with the ball.
Surprise Picks: Sandeep/Shivam/Prasidh are sure to get a lot of games with only one from Pat C/Lockie playing. Rana can be expected to chip in 2–3 overs in case an extra batsman plays.
Sunrisers Hyderabad:
The Sunrisers seem to have a strong opening pair of Warner & Bairstow, which hinders them to potentially play both Rashid & Nabi, who are very effective with both the bat & the ball in T20 cricket. If both Rashid & Nabi play along with the openers, then the team’s batting line-up becomes very weak in the middle. Either Kane or Marsh has to perform consistently to assure the team a more competent batting unit. Abishek Sharma could be the 3rd spinner in the later part of the tournament and with his long hitting skills, he could definitely be of great worth to the squad. With the T20 World Cup in the pipeline, this IPL season will be the perfect opportunity for Vijay Shankar & Pandey to prove their prowess.
Probable XI:
1.Warner
2.Bairstow
3.M.Marsh/Kane
4.Pandey
5.Vijay Shankar
6.Saha
7.Rashid
8.Bhuvi
9.Nadeem
10.Khaleel/Sid Kaul
11.Abishek Sharma/ Sandeep Sharma
X-Factor: Rashid Khan. Ever since his arrival at SRH, the afghan has been the team’s leading wicket taker, picking up a bulky lot of 55 wickets at an economy of 6.55. Quirky with the bat and dependable with the ball, Rashid Khan would be an important jewel in SRH’s settee.
Surprise Picks: Fabian Allen could be an option for middle order and left arm spin, but again the team combination will surely pose a challenge.
Delhi Capitals:
Delhi Capitals take the field on 20th September when they clash horns with KXIP on the second day. Ricky Ponting’s side would look to go two steps further than last season and achieve glory.
Given the circumstances, many teams have had to find replacements for their squads. Mumbai is without stalwart Malinga while Chennai will play their first season without Suresh Raina. Kolkata has replaced Gurney with the talented Ali Khan, while Adam Zampa will look to bowl in tandem with Chahal.
However, the addition of veterans Rahane and Ashwin can bolster the side to a maiden title. Here’s a look at Delhi’s 2019 season.
Considering the batting line-up, the graph presented below represents the runs made by the top 4 batsmen of each team:
At the top of this list are DC, with an impressive tally of 1816 runs. This corroborates that the likes of Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Shreyas Iyer, and Rishab Pant have performed well as a unit.
Languishing at the bottom are KKR, with 1284 runs from their top four.
However, despite starting strongly, the problems lying with DC are depicted in the following graph.
This graph represents the runs made by the lower-middle order batsmen. While Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard, and Krunal Pandya made valuable contributions, the batsmen at DC have accumulated a paltry 385 runs. To put this into perspective, Andre Russell scored 510 runs batting at number 5 or number 6 which reflects in them being second on this chart.
Therefore, the addition of Rahane ensures that Pant is pushed to bat at number 5, offering stability and the much needed firepower. On looking at the bowling, there is no doubt that Kagiso Rabada will spearhead the attack. His 2019 tally of 25 wickets in 12 matches is the joint highest taken by any bowler donning the Delhi jersey. Additionally, the experience of Amit Mishra and Ishant Sharma will prove to be vital for Delhi’s season.
Considering that the grounds are tipped to be spin friendly, the presence of left arm spinner Axar Patel will add versatility to their squad. However, the inclusion of Ravi Ashwin will be massive. He is the only player to have a winner’s medal in the squad. His ability to bowl in the powerplay, as well as the middle overs, will offer flexibility to DC. His 35 wickets in the powerplay makes him the highest wicket taking spinner. His average of 24.74 in the powerplay is the best among all bowlers.
Probable XI:
1) Prithvi Shaw
2) Shikhar Dhawan
3) Ajinkya Rahane
4) Shreyas Iyer
5) Rishab Pant
6) Shimron Hetmyer/Keemo Paul
7) Axar Patel
8) Ravichandran Ashwin
9) Kagiso Rabada
10) Anrich Nortje
11) Ishant Sharma/Mohit Sharma
Key Players:
1) Shikhar Dhawan
2) Shreyas Iyer
3) Kagiso Rabada
X-factor:
1) Rishab Pant
2) Anrich Nortje
3) Prithvi Shaw
Kings XI Punjab:
Apart from M.S.Dhoni, Rohit and Virat, another captain who will be under the spotlight is K L Rahul. The Northpaw will have the opportunity to lead a team for the first time in his IPL career. However, this follows after two stunning seasons where he amassed 659 and 593 runs in 2018 and 2019 respectively. He will be reliant on his Karnataka teammates Karun Nair, Mayank Agarwal, Jagadeesha Suchith and Krishnappa Gowtham as they embark on a journey to success. The Caribbean trio of Gayle, Pooran, and Cottrell will also determine how long Punjab’s season will be. All-rounders Maxwell and Neesham provide the explosive finishing much needed for the team coached by Anil Kumble. With regards to the bowling department, Mohammed Shami, and spinners Mujeeb and Murugan Ashwin will be crucial pieces to this side. Leading the attack with 19 wickets last season, Shami will have even more responsibility to deliver. T20 specialist, Chris Jordan will be counted upon despite having a poor run for RCB.
They kick start their campaign against tournament favorites Delhi Capitals on the second day, September 20th. Punjab will look to take inspiration from their 2014 run where they went all the way to the finals after starting strongly in the UAE. Just like that season, should Maxwell come good, we’re in for some good entertainment from Punjab this time.
Probable XI:
1. K L Rahul
2. Chris Gayle
3. Mayank Agarwal
4. Karun Nair
5. Nicholas Pooran
6. Mandeep Singh/Sarfaraz Khan/Deepak Hooda
7. Jagadeesha Suchith
8. Sheldon Cottrell
9. Murugan Ashwin
10. Mujeeb
11. Mohammed Shami
X-Factor: Nicholas Pooran, Mujeeb
Key Players: K L Rahul, Mohammed Shami, Glenn Maxwell.
