Left Arm Around

As we approach the 17th edition of the Indian Premier League, the most lucrative domestic T20 competition in the world, here we examine how each of the 10 teams are shaping up ahead of the tournament start on Friday.

Chennai Super Kings

First we start with the five-time champions CSK, the joint-most successful team in IPL history alongside Mumbai Indians.

After claiming an extraordinary fifth title in last year’s rain-reduced final against Gujarat Titans, the men in yellow will be full of confidence as they aim to defend their crown.

But man-of-the-match in the 2023 showpiece Devon Conway has been sidelined for the whole campaign after sustaining a thumb injury.

MS Dhoni’s troops, however, will be bouyed by the signings of fellow Kiwi superstars Daryl Mitchell and Rachin Ravindra. The pair have just two matches of IPL experience between them, yet both showed their class with tremendous ODI World Cup campaigns in the country late last year.

The vast experience of MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja, Moeen Ali and Ajinkya Rahane, coupled with talented youngsters like Ruturaj Gaikwad, Matheesha Pathirana and Ravindra, gives CSK a fantastic opportunity to challenge again.

Don’t be surprised if they lift the trophy once more…

Delhi Capitals

Finished a disappointing ninth last season, however they will be ecstatic about the return of Rishabh Pant.

Pant, 26, has not played Cricket since his horrific car crash in December 2022. He will lead the side, replacing David Warner as captain.

They will be without Lungi Ngidi through injury and Harry Brook after the tragic loss of his grandmother, but the Capitals made plenty of other shrewd signings in December’s auction.

Ricky Ponting’s side secured the services of Australia quick Jhye Richardson and the exciting South Africa batter Tristan Stubbs. Both have previous IPL experience with Punjab Kings and Mumbai Indians respectively.

Their batting stocks look particularly strong with David Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Prithvi Shaw, Axar Patel and Pant all capable of clearing the ropes on regular occasions.

Expected to finish higher- just probably not good enough to win their first IPL title.

We shall see….

Gujarat Titans

After claiming the crown in their debut IPL season in 2022, and losing in a close 2023 final, GT are a team that seem to have found a winning formula. And quickly.

But after losing influential captain and all-rounder Hardik Pandya to Mumbai Indians, they face a fresh challenge as Shubman Gill takes over the captaincy reigns.

Gill enjoyed a record-breaking 2023 IPL season, scoring 890 runs in just 17 matches at an average of 59.33 and strike-rate of 157.80.

Although the 24-year-old has no previous IPL captaincy experience, he is supported by a great pool of talent at the franchise.

The likes of Rashid Khan, David Miller, Sai Sudarshan, Wriddhiman Saha and Rahul Tewatia remain the core of the side, while the signings of Umesh Yadav, Australia quick Spencer Johnson and Afghan all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai add strength in depth to their squad.

Losing key man Mohammad Shami to injury is a real blow, but I’d be surprised if we don’t see GT in the play-offs come the end of the regular season.

A team to be feared…

Kolkata Knight Riders

24.75 crore- the most expensive buy in the history of IPL Cricket. That’s how much KKR paid to recruit the services of Aussie superstar quick Mitchell Starc.

After labouring the seventh place finishes in the 2023 and 2022 editions, the two-time champions were keen to bolster their squad. And then some.

The marquee signing of Starc proves they mean business, but we shouldn’t overlook the great business they’ve done elsewhere.

Destructive England opener Phil Salt comes in to replace mate Jason Roy, West Indian Sherfane Rutherford gives another middle-order option and Mujeeb Ur Rahman improves their already great supply of spin options. Manish Pandey has also made the switch from DC.

Captain Shreyas Iyer’s fitness is an obvious concern, however KKR have some brilliant experience in the form of Nitish Rana, Andre Russell and Sunil Narine.

Watch out for rising star Rinku Singh- an unbelievable middle-order finisher who’s made an incredible start to his international career. A player who can turn a game on its head!

Although the team looks stronger than previous seasons, their lack of fast bowling quality should be a genuine worry. Should Starc get injured, their campaign could crash and burn.

Should finish outside the play-off spots.

Lucknow Super Giants

Another new IPL franchise who have finished third in both of their seasons so far, yet failed to claw themselves into a final.

With a strong all-round unit featuring the likes of KL Rahul, Quinton De Kock, Nicholas Pooran, Marcus Stoinis and Krunal Pandya, amongst others, you’d think that Justin Langer’s team will be strong contenders once again.

They have strengthened their batting stocks with the signing of Devdutt Padikkal from Rajasthan Royals, while former England all-rounder David Willey has made the switch from RCB.

LSG fans will also be incredibly excited by the signing of rising West Indian pace bowler Shamar Joseph.

The 24-year-old has played only two T20 games in his short career so far, however recently starred with 13 wickets in the Windies Test tour of Australia.

Captain KL Rahul has been passed fit after sustaining an injury in the first Test against England in January.

Mumbai Indians

Five-time champions who lost in last year’s eliminator to Gujarat Titans.

Although the core batting line-up of Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav and Tilak Varma remains the same, MI will be overjoyed by the return of superstar all-rounder Hardik Pandya.

The 30-year-old is back as captain having played for the franchise between 2015 and 2021.

Tim David, Mohammad Nabi and Romario Shepherd give them further experience and all-round options, while pace bowlers Gerald Coetzee and Dilshan Madushanka have been bought after impressive performances in last year’s ODI World Cup.

The added bonus of Jasprit Bumrah provides them a pace attack to be feared, but a lack of quality in the spin department may be their Achilles heel.

They may be relying too much on the experience of leg-spinner Piyush Chawla.

Expect them to finish in and around the play-offs.

Punjab Kings

With just six wins in 14 fixtures last season, Shikhar Dhawan’s men have a serious point to prove.

They have bolstered their pace bowling ranks with the signings of Harshal Patel and Chris Woakes, meanwhile South African batter Rilee Rossouw has made the move after one season at DC.

Their batting has firepower with the likes of Jonny Bairstow, Jitesh Sharma and rising star Prabhsimran Singh, but the recent form of England’s Liam Livingstone could be a real worry. Should he get going and hit his destructive best, who knows what scores PBKS could reach.

Much like MI, Trevor Bayliss’ side look light on world-class spin options. Zimbabwe all-rounder Sikandar Raza could play a crucial role across the tournament with his canny off-spin and useful middle-order batting.

Rookie spinners Prince Choudhary and Vidwath Kaverappa could make their IPL debuts, but it’s a huge ask for them to shine straight away.

An outside bet for the last four.

Rajasthan Royals

After claiming the IPL title in the inaugural 2008 season, the Royals are yet to lift the trophy for a second time.

But after losing the final in 2022 and narrowly missing out on the play-offs in 2023, their chance to collect some silverware could be better than ever before.

Their core batting unit of Jos Buttler, Shimron Hetymer, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sanju Samson remains the same, though Kumar Sangakkara’s side recognised a weakness in middle-order depth to secure some great signings at the auction.

Explosive West Indian Rovman Powell has made the switch from DC, while Englishman Tom Kohler-Cadmore could make his IPL debut after impressing in franchise leagues around the globe.

Their fast bowling ranks were also bolstered by the signings of Avesh Khan and South African left-armer Nandre Burger, providing great competition for places with the likes of Trent Boult, Kuldeep Sen and Sandeep Sharma.

With Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzi Chahal and Adam Zampa giving them invaluable quality and experience in the spin department, this is an outfit as balanced as any.

Tournaments aren’t won on paper but they do appear incredibly strong.

Top 4 should be a MINIMUM expectation!

Royal Challengers Bangalore

King Kohli is back and raring to go.

After missing the entirety of the Test series against England, Virat Kohli returns to his beloved RCB on a quest to win a first IPL title.

They narrowly missed out on the play-offs in 2023, but Faf Du Plessis’ men secured a huge signing in the form of Aussie all-rounder Cameron Green.

Green, 24, was bought for a whopping 17.5 crore after impressing in his debut IPL campaign with Mumbai Indians last year.

Sanjay Bangar’s side have also added to their fast bowling stocks with the signings of overseas quicks Lockie Ferguson, Alzarri Joseph and Tom Curran.

With a squad clearly very thin on spin options, RCB may be relying heavily on the batting quality of Maxwell, Du Plessis, Kohli, Patidar and co to get them out of jail.

Englishman Will Jacks could also play an important role with his wily right-arm off-spin and powerful top-order batting ability.

Jacks was ruled out of the whole 2023 season after sustaining a muscle injury while playing for England.

RCB will win games with their firepower, but should finish outside the play-offs.

Sunrisers Hyderabad

2016 champions who finished bottom in 2023.

After just four wins in 14 fixtures last year, the SRH management knew a change was needed. Boy oh boy, did they deliver.

Bidding an astonishing 20.5 crore, the ‘Orange Army’ bought Australia’s Pat Cummins and named him captain, replacing South African Aiden Markram.

Although his IPL record is modest and he has no previous captaincy experience at the tournament, his record in charge of Australia is a stellar one.

First securing the World Test Championship in June with victory over India, his side retained the Ashes urn in England before going over to India and lifting the ODI World Cup. Quite remarkable success in a short period of time!

SRH also made a statement in acquiring the signatures of Cummins’ teammate Travis Head and Sri Lankan leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga.

Then you have South Africa’s Heinrich Klaasen; arguably the best middle-order T20 batter in the world and somebody who can provide them with real impetus. Can take a game away from the opposition.

With him at their disposal, who knows what could happen?

It’s sure to be another brilliant year of IPL Cricket…