By Nitesh Mathur, Broken Cricket Dreams, 3/24/2022
Time for IPL 2022! Yep, the festival is back—This time with two more teams. That is right! Welcome Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Kings!
Lot has changed since last time. A massive auction and an end of an era. No Suresh Raina, Chris Gayle, AB De Villiers and although MS Dhoni & Virat Kohli are still here, they are no longer captains.
Without further ado, here is everything you need to know about IPL 2022 QUICKLY—Squads, Schedule, Latest Injury News, Commentators, History, and Predictions! By the end of this read, you should have all your IPL 2022 questions answered.
Venues: All the matches will be played in & around Mumbai:
Wankhede Stadium
Brabourne Stadium
DY Patil Stadium (Navi Mumbai)
MCA International Stadium (Pune)
IPL 2022 Groups
GROUP A
GROUP B
Mumbai Indians
Chennai Super Kings
Kolkata Knight Riders
Sunrisers Hyderabad
Rajasthan Royals
Royal Challengers Bangalore
Delhi Capitals
Punjab Kings
Lucknow Super Giants
Gujarat Titans
IPL 2022 Groups
*Note: Unlike previous IPLs, this is not going to be a round-robin tournament. To keep the number of games bearable, each team will play teams from their groups twice (as well as one team from the other group), and the rest of the team once. So that is two games against five teams and one game against the other four for a total of 14 matches.
Detailed team-by-team fixtures are displayed with each team below.
The big news in this arena is that Ravi Shastri is back in the commentary box after his coaching tenure with the Indian team came to an end. Also joining him are ex-IPL stars like Mr. IPL – Suresh Raina, Piyush Chawla, and Dhawal Kulkarni
English/Global Broadcast
Harsha Bhogle, Ian Bishop, Alan Wilkins, Pommie Mbangwa, Simon Doull, Sunil Gavaskar, Danny Morrison, Graeme Swann, Scott Styris, Neroli Medows, Anant Tyagi, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, Murali Karthik, Kevin Pietersen, Matthew Hayden, Deep Dasgupta, Anjum Chopra, Nicholas Knight, WV Raman, Daren Ganga, Morne Morkel, Graeme Smith
Apart from these two major broad categories, IPL 2022 will be broadcasted in at least seven other regional languages with marquee Indian domestic cricketers as commentators.
Royal Challengers Bangalore: 2009, 2011, 2016 (Runner-Up)
Delhi Capitals: 2020 (Runner-Up)
Punjab Kings: 2014 (Runner-Up)
*Note: Rising Pune Supergiant reached the final of the 2017 IPL (Deccan Chargers Gujarat Lions, Sahara Pune Warriors India, Kochi Tuskers Kerela were the other teams to have featured in the IPL – Now defunct. Also, Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab were the earlier names of Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings respectively).
2022 Indian Premier League News at A Glance
IPL 2022 Injury/Withdrawn List
Jofra Archer was eligible to be in the IPL 2022 auctions. However, he will not be playing this season due to an elbow injury. Watch out for MI in future seasons. Bumrah + Archer will be WOW!
Deepak Chahar is set to miss the IPL with a recurring quadriceps injury.
Anrich Nortje is suffering from an injury but is back with the squad (might not be available right away).
Jason Roy & Alex Hales withdraw due to bio bubble fatigue. Mark Wood is out of the IPL with an elbow injury.
Suryakumar Yadav is suffering from a hairline thumb fracture. He will miss the first match and may comeback soon.
Other IPL 2022 Major News
MS Dhoni steps down from captaincy. Ravindra Jadeja the new captain for CSK. Dhoni will however play as a player for one (or more) seasons.
Moeen Ali gets visa (late) and had to be quarantined. Hence, he will arrive by CSK’s second match.
IPL 2022 Team Availability
Every season, team combinations are impacted by international commitments. Here are the ongoing/future series that might collide with IPL 2022:
Bangladesh Tour of South Africa:Dwaine Pretorius (CSK), Kagiso Rabada (PBKS), and Lungi Ngidi & Mustafizur Rahman (both DC). However, they may only miss one or two matches since CSA has granted leave for Rabada, Ngidi, Jansen, Markram, and Rassie van der Dussen at the expense of the Test series. Read Firdose Moonda’s article explaining Money Matters.
Australia tour of Pakistan:Australian players are not granted a leave till April 6th, which means they will be unavailable for 4-5 matches for their respective teams. This includes Pat Cummins, Aaron Finch (KKR), Sean Abbott (SRH), Hazlewood/Behrendorff (RCB), Marcus Stoinis (LSG), and David Warner (first two matches). Oh and Glenn Maxwell is getting married, so let us leave him alone for a couple of weeks.
England tour of West Indies: Jonny Bairstow (PBKS), Alzarri Joseph (LSG) – Misses first two matches due to the Test series
NZ Tour of England:Starts in June but if their IPL teams qualify for the playoffs, Tim Southee (KKR) & Jonny Bairstow (PBKS) might miss out.
*Note: Netherlands tour of NZ series is also ongoing but NZ have released all their IPL bound players, so there is no conflict.
CSK’s strength lies in their all-rounders and bench strength. Moeen Ali, Jadeja, and Bravo make up the core but even if they sit out, Santner, Chris Jordan, Pretorius, and Dube are adequate replacements.
Weaknesses
Out and out pace bowling. Without Chahar, Adam Milne is the lone spearhead of their fast bowling attack but Deshpande/Asif are a bit inexperienced.
X Factor
Watch out for Devon Conway, or as he is known in CSK circuits—Mike Hussey 2.0.
Chennai Super Kings IPL 2022 Squad List
Batters
Ruturaj Gaikwad
Ambati Rayudu
Robin Uthappa (WK)
MS Dhoni (C/WK)
Hari Nishaanth
Narayan Jagadeesan
Subhranshu Senapati
_________________________
Overseas
Devon Conway (WK)
All Rounders
Ravindra Jadeja
Shivam Dube
Rajvardhan Hangragekar
Bhagat Verma
___________________________
Overseas
Mitchell Santner
Dwayne Bravo
Moeen Ali
Dwaine Pretorius
Chris Jordan
Bowlers
Deepak Chahar
Tushar Deshpande
KM Asif
Mukesh Choudhary
Prashant Solanki
Simarjeet Singh
__________________________
Overseas
Adam Milne
Mahesh Theekshana
Overseas Players (by Nationality):
New Zealand: Devon Conway, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne
Balance. Solid top order with Marsh/Axar as allrounders and Sarfaraz Khan/Rovman Powell as the finishers. And with Shardul Thakur here, there is no need to fear.
Weaknesses
Replacements. Warner/Marsh/Nortje/the Fizz will be out for the first 4-5 matches.
X Factor
Watch out for Axar Patel-Shardul Thakur. Could be the Sneh Rana-Pooja Vastrakar type lower order players DC need.
Shubman Gill, 2. Matthew Wade (WK), 3. Wriddhiman Saha, 4. Hardik Pandya (C), 5. Vijay Shankar, 6. Rahul Tewatia, 7. Gurkeerat Singh Mann/Jayant Yadav, 8. Rashid Khan, 9. Mohammad Shami, 10. Lockie Ferguson, 11. Noor Ahmad/R Sai Kishore
Strengths
Bowling line-up of envy—Rashid Khan, Shami, Lockie Ferguson, R Sai Kishore.They also bought most of the India allrounders in the last five years (Pandya, Vijay Shankar, Gurkeerat, Jayant Yadav, Tewatia)
Weaknesses
Top order. Without Jason Roy, this is a think looking line up. Pandya-Shankar-Tewatia-Rashid can do wonders once in a while but lot rests of the Gill-Wade opening combination.
X Factor
R Sai Kishore. Consistent performer for Tamil Nadu in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the domestic game. Should finally come off the bench and make his mark in the IPL.
Gujarat Titans IPL 2022 Squad List
Batters
Shubman Gill
Wriddhiman Saha (WK)
Abhinav Manohar
Sai Sudharshan
____________________________
Overseas
Matthew Wade (WK)
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (WK)
All Rounders
Hardik Pandya (C)
Vijay Shankar
Gurkeerat Singh Mann
Rahul Tewatia
Jayant Yadav
__________________________
Overseas
Rashid Khan
Dominic Drakes
Bowlers
Mohammad Shami
R Sai Kishore
Varun Aaron
Pradeep Sangwan
Darshan Nalkande
Yash Dayal
___________________________
Overseas
Lockie Ferguson
Noor Ahmad
Jason Roy* (withdrawn)
Overseas Players (by Nationality):
Australia: Matthew Wade
New Zealand:Lockie Ferguson
West Indies: Dominic Drakes
Afghanistan: Rashid Khan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Noor Ahmad
The All-Round Package.If fit & in-form, Russell-Narine-Cummins-Venkatesh Iyer will be a handful. And captain Shreyas Iyer is in rich vein of form as well.
Weaknesses
Wicketkeeper. With a long tournament, there are not many keeper options apart from Sheldon Jackson (Indian domestic) & Sam Billings. Fitting them into the middle order might change combinations in the XI.
X Factor
Watch out for Chamika Karunaratne. With Cummins arriving after match 4 and Russell’s fitness never certain, Chamika could be a handy lower order bowling all-rounder.
KL Rahul (C), 2. Quinton de Kock (WK), 3. Manish Pandey, 4. Marcus Stoinis, 5. Deepak Hooda, 6. Krunal Pandya, 7. Jason Holder, 8. Krishnappa Gowtham/Shahbaz Nadeem, 9. Ravi Bishnoi, 10. Avesh Khan, 11. Dushmantha Chameera
Strengths
The first XI. What a team – Pandey/Stoinis at 3 & 4 means KL Rahul can play his natural game. Hooda-Pandya-Holder are adequate finishers/all-rounders and Bishnoi/Avesh Khan/ Chameera strong bowlers.
Weaknesses
Replacement bowlers might be a slight concern.
X Factor
Watch out for Rahul-QDK as the opening pair of the tournament.
Lucknow Super Giants IPL 2022 Squad List
Batters
KL Rahul (WK/C)
Manish Pandey
Manan Vohra
Karan Sharma
Ayush Badoni
___________________________
Overseas
Quinton de Kock (WK)
Evin Lewis (WK)
All Rounders
Deepak Hooda
Krunal Pandya
Krishnappa Gowtham
___________________________
Overseas
Jason Holder
Marcus Stoinis
Kyle Mayers
Bowlers
Avesh Khan
Ravi Bishnoi
Shahbaz Nadeem
Ankit Rajpoot
Mayank Yadav
___________________________
Overseas
Dushmantha Chameera
Andrew Tye
*Mark Wood (Withdrawn)
Overseas Players (by Nationality):
Australia: Marcus Stoinis, Andrew Tye
West Indies: Evin Lewis, Jason Holder, Kyle Mayers
The same core as before. Rohit-Ishan-Sky-Pollard-Bumrah.
Weaknesses
The bowling cohort. Unadkat/Thampi are adequate players to come off the bench but not the ideal starters.They will also miss the Pandya brothers.
X Factor
Watch out for the foreign recruits. Brevis was the batter of the U-19 World Cup, Tim David is the hardest hitting Singaporean in the T20 circuit, Fabian Allen’s reputation has gone up in the last couple of years, and a fit-Tymal Mills is a treat to watch.
Mumbai Indians IPL 2022 Squad List
Batters
Rohit Sharma
Ishan Kishan (WK)
Suryakumar Yadav
Anmolpreet Singh
Rahul Budhhi
Aryan Juyal (WK)
Ramandeep Singh
Tilak Verma
___________________________
Overseas
Dewald Brevis
Tim David
All Rounders
Arshad Khan
Sanjay Yadav
___________________________
Overseas
Fabian Allen
Kieron Pollard
Daniel Sams
Bowlers
Jasprit Bumrah
Jaydev Unadkat
Murugan Ashwin
Mayank Markande
Basil Thampi
Hrithik Shokeen
Arjun Tendulkar
___________________________
Overseas
*Jofra Archer (unavailable this season)
Riley Meredith
Tymal Mills
Overseas Players (by Nationality):
Australia: Riley Meredith, Daniel Sams, Tim David (Singapore/Australia)
The top 5. Agarwal & Dhawan are perennial Orange Cap contenders, Livingstone-Bairstow are T20 legends, and Shahrukh Khan is the newest finisher in the house.
Weaknesses
Not many Indian batters on the bench if Agarwal/Dhawan were to get injured.
X Factor
Watch out for Rishi Dhawan. He has had a pivotal domestic season.
Bowling line up of Siraj-Harshal-Shahbaz-Hasaranga-Hazlewood is mouth-watering.
Weaknesses
How many games will it take RCB to figure out their best XI, which has been their usual problem. I reckon until Maxwell & Hazlewood come in, RCB might experiment with Anuj Rawat-Lomror-Rutherford.
X Factor
Watch out for Finn Allen. If he gets a chance, just remember his debut 29-ball 71 in a T20I. Also watch out for captain Faf du Plessis. Legendary leader – can he help RCB cross the line?
Kane Williamson (C), 2. Rahul Tripathi, 3. Aiden Markram/Glenn Phillips, 4. Nicholas Pooran (WK), 5. Abdul Samad, 6. Priyam Garg/Abhishek Sharma, 7. Washington Sundar/Shreyas Gopal, 8. Romario Shepherd, 9. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, 10. Umran Malik, 11. T Natarajan/Kartik Tyagi
Strengths
Umran Malik-Natarajan-Bhuvneshwar Kumar make a solid bowling line-up. Expect Umran Malik to break the speed charts in this edition of the IPL.
Weaknesses
Not convinced with Priyam Garg/Abhishek Sharma at #6. They might be better used up the order with experienced batters to finish off the match.
X Factor
Watch out for Rahul Tripathi.He was the heart and soul of KKR’s run to the final last year and for RPS in 2017.Also watch out for Suchith, the ultimate substitute fielder.
Ravindra Jadeja is the captain of CSK in IPL 2022 as MS Dhoni steps down.
Who are all the IPL 2022 commentators?
Harsha Bhogle, Ian Bishop, Aan Wilkins, Pommie Mbangwa, Simon Doull, Sunil gavaskar, Danny Morrison, Graeme Swann, Scott Styris, neroli Medows, Anant Tyagi, Laxman Sivaramakrishnan, Murali Karthik, Kevin Pietersen, Matthew Hayden, Deep Dasgupta, Anjum Chopra, Nicholas Knight, WV Raman, Daren Ganga, Morne Morkel, Graeme Smith head the English global broadcast unit, while Ravi Shastri, Suresh Raina, Aakash Chopra, Mohammad Kaif, Mayanti Langer Binny, Irfan Pathan, Parthiv Patel, Harbhajan Singh, Piyush Chawla, Dhawal Kulkarni, Jatin Sapru, Tanya Purohit, Suren Sundaram are the Hindi/English commentators.
Who is the captain of RCB in IPL 2022?
After Virat Kohli stepped down, Faf du Plessis became the captain of RCB in IPL 2022.
What are the two new teams in IPL 2022?
Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants are the two new teams in IPL 2022.
IPL 2021 prediction results were quite unusual this time around.
The usual contenders for the Orange and Purple caps –David Warner, Quinton de Kock, Rashid Khan, Jasprit Bumrah, & Kagiso Rabada all had sub-par seasons. Even recent IPL specialists like Ishan Kishan & Suryakumar Yadav had seasons to forget. Nicholas Pooran probably had the worst of the lot.
The Year of the Surprise Package
This was the year of the ‘Surprise Package’—the rise of Avesh Khan & Chetan Sakariya, Moeen Ali 2.0, Harshal Patel’s dream season, the return of Glenn Maxwell, consistency in Sanju Samson & Prithvi Shaw, and even a 37-run over from the man who can do it all—Ravindra Jadeja.
Of course there are some things that never change. AB De Villiers & the Gayle Storm struck a couple of match-winning knocks without much match practice.
Finally, if we would have done a ‘Catch of the Season’ award, surely Ravi Bishnoi would have received it for his 2 classical running/diving catches.
IPL 2021 Prediction
Before the IPL began, we asked our Twitter followers to predict the IPL result and award winners with #BCDPredictions. Here were the categories:
#Champions
#Top4
#MVP
#OrangeCap
#PurpleCap
#FairPlay
#EmergingPlayer
#SurprisePackage
#BrokenDream
The Actual Results
Since half the games were not completed, we will consider multiple winners for each category if there were close contenders. (If we do not consider close calls, there actually very few correct answers).
Interestingly, there were zero predictions for Shikhar Dhawan & Harshal Patel, the orange & purple cap winners respectively.
So here is how things stacked at the halfway stage.
Note*: DC and PBKS played 8 games each, while other teams played only 7.
Champions
Delhi Capitals (12 points, 8 games) Chennai Super Kings (10 points, 7 games)
The moment of truth….Drumroll please….WE HAVE A TIE!
1st 🥇: Aviral Rai, James McCagrey, and Vandit (5/12)(Vandit was also the winner of the IPL 2020 Predictions)
2nd🥈:Sourabh Sanyal, Sourabh Negi, Scripturient, The Hundred Report, Xan, Priyam Desai, Kanishk, Rohan Gulavani, and Arnab Bhattacharrya (4/12)
3rd 🥉: Shivam & Harrison (3/5)
Honorable Mention:Jonny – “Hope it stays COVID safe most of all #IPL.”
The Anti Award goes to…Jimmy Ciego! His top 4 were RR (5), PBKS (6), KKR (7), and SRH (8) with Nicholas Pooran as the most valuable player. Oops… 😅 No worries. My predictions were a close second there.
Sometimes, predictions go your way, and sometimes they do not. The important thing is to have fun and get a chance to interact with other cricket fans.
In all seriousness though, my thoughts and prayers with everyone going through the pandemic around the world, especially in India. Take care and stay safe.
Thank you all for participating in the IPL 2021 Prediction 😊 Until next time…
Comment below your favorite memories from this IPL, share with your friends, and subscribe below to receive email alerts when new articles come out!
IPL 2021 has unfortunately been suspended ‘indefinitely’. Seemed inevitable—here are five takeaways from this tournament.
1. India’s Problem of Plenty At the Top for India, Questions Elsewhere
Virat Kohli announced during the India-England series that he & Rohit Sharma would open for the T20I World Cup. Ishan Kishan & Suryakumar Yadav also had stunning debuts, but IPL 2021 has changed the narrative.
Dhawan, Shaw, & KL Rahul are back in the reckoning with dominating performances while Agarwal signed off with a blazing 99*. Forms of Rohit-Kohli, Gill, Kishan, and SKY on the other hand? Concerning.
While India has plenty of options at the top, lower order looks unstable. Pandyas are horridly out of touch, Tewatia was a one-season wonder, and Karthik’s form is hot and cold. On the bowling front, Natarajan is injured, Varun and Bhuvneshwar Kumar have fitness issues, Kuldeep-Chahal are in the worst phases of their careers, and Sundar-Ashwin failed to make a mark. Only positives were the Chahar cousins, Harshal Patel, & Jadeja. Good finds in Sakariya & Avesh as well.
2. England Burnt Out, Hope for South Africa, Doubts for West Indies
England arrived in India with the goal of experiencing conditions that will help them lift the World T20 trophy. Fast forward two months, Stokes-Archer are injured & Morgan’s magic is missing—both as captain and with the bat. Apart from century in the final game, Buttler flattered to deceive, Currans were inconsistent, Woakes-Malan barely played, & Roy-Livingstone-Billings did not even get a chance. Only Moeen Ali & Bairstow had positive seasons.
With a busy home Test summer around the corner, England need to manage their players carefully. A case of severe burnout.
South Africans, on the other hand, endured a resurgent campaign. Genius of AB De Villiers aside, forms of du Plessis, Morris, Miller, and even 42-year-old Tahir provides South Africa much needed hope. With Janneman Malan & Nortje in brilliant touch during the Pakistan series, the Proteas have a decent core of youth & experience.
Ngidi, Rabada, and QDK were not in top gear, but we all know what damage they can do.
Finally, West Indians witnessed high highs and low lows. Pollard played his best IPL innings, Hetmyer & Russell displayed their finishing potential, and Gayle produced a couple of match-winning performances as well. Yet much-hyped Pooran had one of the all-time worst IPL seasons—4 ducks & an average of 4.66. Not much of note from Allen, Holder, & Narine either.
3. Loyalty Is Temporary, Class Is Permanent
David Warner might only be considered a great modern-day Australian opener, but he is an absolute legend in the Indian Premier League.
Most fifties (50), third on list of centuries (4), and fifth highest run-scorer (5447), best for any foreign player. More importantly, he led Sunrisers Hyderabad to their only title in 2016 along with four qualifiers.
It took just 6 games, couple of unfortunate run-outs, a 110 strike-rate, and miscommunication with management to axe him. Expect Warner to don a jersey of another team next IPL.
Loyalty is fickle.
4. World T20 In Danger?
Unlike the successfully hosted IPL 2020, the way this edition ended was bit of a shame. IPL 2021 was supposed to be testing grounds to see if India can host the World T20 later this year. India failed.
UAE is the top contender to host the tournament, but multiple issues still to think about. IPL 2020 was in a strict bio-bubble with 8 teams involved. The World Cup will host 16 teams, and each team is allowed an extended squad of 23 players.
Man proposes COVID disposes.
5. Humanity Prevails
Jason Behrendorff had to be the most unfortunate cricketing story of IPL 2021.
Not picked in initial auction, called as a replacement for CSK, quarantined, and when he finally became eligible to play, the IPL was called off.
What’s worse? Australian government is not accepting their citizens (even jail threat), so the Australian contingent from the IPL must fly to Sri Lanka & Maldives until the travel ban ends.
Regardless, kudos to Behrendorff & earlier to Cummins for contributing to the COVID-19 emergency in India that set off a series of players donating to the cause.
Our thoughts and prayers with India and others suffering from the global pandemic.
Moments of The Day: Rayudu’s Hitting & Pollard’s Epic All-Round Show
Here are my moments of today:
Faf du Plessis-Moeen Ali’s consistency at the top drives CSK. After Ruturaj departed for 4, onus was on Faf-Moeen to repeat what they have done all-tournament, and they did not disappoint. Aggressive 108 partnership in 61 balls, with both amassing fifties set the tone for the carnage to follow.
Ambati Rayudu’s free-flowing nature gets CSK past 200. Rayudu’s career has perhaps been the greatest Broken Dream in recent Indian cricket. At an ODI overage of 47.05 with 3 centuries & 10 fifties, it is a shame he only played 55 ODIs and was dropped at the eve of the 2019 World Cup. 2004 India U-19 member, in-and-out of the international team, run-ins with the management, the Indian Cricket League stint—he has seen it all, but this innings was the most fluent I have ever seen him play. He had a really good IPL as an opener a couple of seasons back, and this 72* (27) in the middle order showed his versatility. 7 sixes, 4 fours, 102* (49) partnership where ‘finisher’ Jadeja ended with 22* (22). Brilliant.
Pollard can do no wrong. When Faf & Moeen were galloping along, Pollard was given the ball in the 11th over. He delivered right away with medium-pace dibbly-dobblies, taking back-to-back wickets of du Plessis & Suresh Raina. When Pollard came in to bat, Mumbai Indians still needed 138 in 62 balls. After getting an eye in, he was just 3 (5). In came Jadeja, Pollard smashed 3 sixes in 4 balls and never looked back.
Definitely one of the best IPL all-round shows of all-time.
Honorable Mention: Hardik Pandya’s cameo with back-to-back sixes brings MI closer; Sam Curran almost brings CSK back into the game with yorkers at the death; Quinton de Kock-Rohit Sharma set 71-run opening partnership for MI
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: Du Plessis Drops Catch, What?
There are two ways at looking at this game: 1. Brilliant game between the two best sides of the IPL that added another classic to its memories; 2. Good game, but CSK’s faults gave Pollard and co enough opportunity to bounce back. Here are chances CSK gave away.
Sam Curran has just delivered a 2-run/wicket over in the 17th and Chennai are back in it. Shardul Thakur gives up a couple of boundaries but CSK hold the upper-hand with 34 needed in 14. Thakur bowls, Pollard swipes, Faf runs in and drops it. Straight through his fingers.2 runs taken. Pollard still alive. The game changing moment.
Shardul Thakur & Lungi Ngidi’s expensive figures gives MI the advantage. Thakur finished with 4-0-56-1 while Ngidi ended with 4-0-62-0, including the full-toss filled last over.
Why did the field not come in with 2 needed in 1 ball?Usually in a close game, some time is taken and field is brought it before the last ball, but completely opposite in this case. Would not have mattered given how Pollard was batting, but this was just too easy for him.
Suresh Raina’s IPL is going downhill after the 54 in the opening game. He has scored 69 runs at 17.25 in the other 5 matches he had a bat.
IPL 2021 Points Table, Orange Cap, & Purple Cap Leaders
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table, Orange Cap, & Purple Cap. We will keep updating it in every article!
Shikhar Dhawan – 380 runs (PBKS, 8 matches)
Harshal Patel – 17 wickets (RCB, 7 matches)
Teams
Played
Won
Lost
Tied No-Result
Points
Net Run Rate
1. Delhi Capitals
8
6
2
0
12
+0.547
2. Chennai Super Kings
7
5
2
0
10
+1.263
3. Royal Challengers Bangalore
7
5
2
0
10
-0.171
4. Mumbai Indians
7
4
3
0
8
+ 0.062
5. Rajasthan Royals
7
3
4
0
6
-0.190
6. Punjab Kings
8
3
5
0
6
-0.368
7. Kolkata Knight Riders
7
2
5
0
4
-0.494
8. Sunrisers Hyderabad
7
1
6
0
2
-0.623
IPL 2021 Points Table
Also, if you have not yet read our IPL Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
Moments of The Day: Several Starts for RR but Just Not Enough
Here are my moments of today:
Buttler-Jaiswal working well for RR: Although Buttler has not quite looked his usual self, he is still providing the runs. Jaiswal’s selection has been inspiring after the Manan Vohra experiment. Today he scored 32 (20) with 2 sixes & Buttler scored 41 (32) with 3 sixes to set the platform for RR. At the halfway stage, RR were 91/2.
Lack of Conversion stalls Rajasthan’s progress: RR’s scorecard reads 41, 32, 42, 35, yet nobody converted to a big one. Wickets at regular intervals and slow finishing lead RR to a par score of 171/4. Miller & Parag played 4 & 7 balls respectively, while Tewatia & Morris just sat in the dugout. That was the game.
Faith in Quinton de Kock Pays Off: With 47 runs in 4 previous games (including 2, 2, & 3), questions were rising on his place & Chris Lynn’s exclusion. He came back with a match-winning knock of 70*(50). Krunal Pandya with a handy contribution of 39* as well.
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: Dube’s Strike Rate Under the Scanner
Shivam Dube has played his part in IPL 2021, providing crucial partnerships & building partnerships at #4. Yet, his 35 (31) including 2 sixes hampered RR’s momentum. With Rassie van der Dussen set to join the Royals soon, Dube should be pushed down the order.
IPL 2021 Points Table, Orange Cap, & Purple Cap Leaders
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table, Orange Cap, & Purple Cap. We will keep updating it in every article!
KL Rahul – 331 runs (PBKS, 7 matches)
Harshal Patel – 17 wickets (RCB, 7 matches)
Teams
Played
Won
Lost
Tied No-Result
Points
Net Run Rate
1. Chennai Super Kings
6
5
1
0
10
+1.475
2. Delhi Capitals
7
5
2
0
10
+0.466
3. Royal Challengers Bangalore
7
5
2
0
10
-0.171
4. Mumbai Indians
6
3
3
0
6
+ 0.071
5. Punjab Kings
7
3
4
0
6
-0.264
6. Kolkata Knight Riders
7
2
5
0
4
-0.494
7. Rajasthan Royals
6
2
4
0
4
-0.69
8. Sunrisers Hyderabad
6
1
5
0
2
-0.264
IPL 2021 Points Table
Also, if you have not yet read our IPL Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
MI Vs PBKS– IPL 2021 Match #17 Quick Review! Ravi Bishnoi & Mohammad Shami set up the chase, and KL Rahul-Mayank Agarwal-Chris Gayle carried Punjab home.
Moments of The Day: Good Team Selection Key to PBKS’ Win
The IPL is full of surprises and memorable moments. Here are my moments of today:
PBKS’ collective bowling performance the key to victory. The way Moises Henriques (3-0-12-0) & Deepak Hooda (3-0-12-1) began set the tone for Punjab’s disciplined bowling effort & got the 5th/6th bowler out of the way earlier. Bishnoi finally came back to the XI and delivered right away. Both Shami & Bishnoi had figures of 4-0-21-2.
KL Rahul & Mayank Agarwal– They delivered all throughout IPL 2020, but had been inconsistent in 2021, which lead to Punjab’s low scores of 106/8 and 120 recently. 53-run partnership today helped Punjab chase the tricky total. KL Rahul has received lots of criticism for “Strike rate is over-rated” comment, but today, slow-ish matured innings by KL & Gayle was exactly what Punjab needed. Strike rate is over-rated…in Chennai.
Rahul Chahar & Jayant Yadav – Mumbai took it close yet again due to the spinners. Chahar has been the best leg-spinner all IPL and was turning it square again. Figures of 4-0-19-1 (8 dot balls) & 4-0-20-0 (16 dot balls) for Chahar & Jayant respectively almost brought MI back in the game.
World T20 World Cup Spotlight: The Universe Boss Is Back
Chris Gayle was going through a lean phase with scores of 10, 11, & 15 with Dawid Malan looking over his shoulder. Despite a slow start today, he came back with 43* (35) with 2 sixes, in usual Gayle fashion on the 8th anniversary of his 175* against Pune Warriors. Mumbai Indians were choking oppositions at will in Chennai and run-a-ball with 3 overs to go was touch and go. Boult came in, & Gayle/Rahul finished it off with 14 balls to spare.
The 41-year-old Universe Boss should definitely be in the 23 men World T20 squad, shouldn’t he?
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: Mumbai’s Batting Is Losing Its Grip
159/9, 152/10, 150/5, 137/9, 131/6 – Things are going from bad to worse for the Mumbai Indians, despite winning 2 without a single convincing batting performance.
The form of Ishan Kishan & Quinton de Kock will be a worry, specially since Chris Lynn went back to the bench after his 49. Except one score of 40, de Kock has scored 2, 2, & 3 respectively. Kishan’s 1 (3), 12 (21) , 26 (28) do not look any better and the miserly 6 (17) was the reason Mumbai scored only 21 runs in the 6-over Powerplay today.
Rohit Sharma & Suryakumar Yadav have done better overall, but neither have converted to the big scores after being set. Rohit’s 63 (52) was better today since he stayed till the 18th over, with 19, 43, 32, 44 earlier. SKY, similarly, has scores of 31, 56, 10, 24, & 33.
With 4 games in the slow pitches of Delhi to follow, MI are in dire need to change strategy…or personnel.
IPL 2021 Points Table, Orange Cap, & Purple Cap Leaders
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table, Orange Cap, & Purple Cap. We will keep updating it in every article!
Shikhar Dhawan – 231 runs (DC, 4 matches)
Harshal Patel – 12 wickets (RCB, 4 matches)
Teams
Played
Won
Lost
Tied No-Result
Points
Net Run Rate
1. Royal Challengers Bangalore
4
4
0
0
8
+ 1.009
2. Chennai Super Kings
4
3
1
0
6
+1.142
3. Delhi Capitals
4
3
1
0
6
+0.426
4. Mumbai Indians
5
2
3
0
4
-0.032
5. Punjab Kings
5
2
3
0
4
-0.428
6. Sunrisers Hyderabad
4
1
3
0
2
-0.228
7. Kolkata Knight Riders
4
1
3
0
2
-0.7
8. Rajasthan Royals
4
1
3
0
2
-1.011
IPL 2021 Points Table
Tomorrow’s Preview
The bottom of the table clash: KKR Vs RR. Purple Vs Pink. Who you do think will win this one?
Also, if you have not yet read our IPL Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
Moments of The Day: Stalwarts Mishra, Shikhar Steal The Show
The IPL is full of surprises and memorable moments. Here are my moments of today:
Amit Mishrais the most successful spinner with 164 wickets in all of IPL (7 away from #1 spot- Malinga) and for good reason too. 38 years young, his guile, spin, and googly continues to puzzle people to this day. Although he did not play last year and was out of the XI in the first few games this IPL, Chennai was the ideal venue for him to exploit his leg spin. With Kuldeep-Chahal struggling in internationals & Ashwin out of contention in T20I, is there a small window for his comeback? (Although he has not been treated too well in his international career).
On paper, Shikhar Dhawan’s45 (42) flatters to deceive, but in context, this may have been just as important as his 85 and 92. At Chepauk, KKR & SRH has lost from winning position against MI, but the experience of Shikhar Dhawan & Steven Smith pushed DC across the line.
Emergence of Lalit Yadav– Along with the experience of Dhawan-Smith, 24-year-old Lalit Yadav stood up with an all-round performance of 4-0-17-1 & mature 22*(25).
Honorable Mentions: Rohit Sharma’s 44
Broken Cricket Dream of the Day: The Power Three of MI?
Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, & Krunal Pandya has been the engine room for the Mumbai Indians, yet they have looked out of sorts this year. In the four innings, they have accumulated:
Hardik Pandya – 35 runs, best of 15
Kieron Pollard – 49 runs, best of 35*, 1 wicket (one match winning performance)
Krunal Pandya – 26 runs, best of 3*, 3 wickets (including match winning 1/13 spell Vs KKR)
RCB’s success in Chennai had been built on Glenn Maxwell & AB De Villiers, and that has been missing from MI’s #4-6.
IPL 2021 Points Table, Orange Cap, & Purple Cap Leaders
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table, Orange Cap, & Purple Cap. We will keep updating it in every article!
Shikhar Dhawan – 231 runs (DC, 4 matches)
Harshal Patel – 12 wickets (RCB, 4 matches)
Teams
Played
Won
Lost
Tied No-Result
Points
Net Run Rate
1. Royal Challengers Bangalore
4
4
0
0
8
+ 1.009
2. Chennai Super Kings
4
3
1
0
6
+1.142
3. Delhi Capitals
4
3
1
0
6
+0.426
4. Mumbai Indians
4
2
2
0
4
+0.187
5. Sunrisers Hyderabad
4
1
3
0
2
-0.228
6. Kolkata Knight Riders
4
1
3
0
2
-0.7
7. Punjab Kings
4
1
3
0
2
-0.824
8. Rajasthan Royals
4
1
3
0
2
-1.011
IPL 2021 Points Table
Also, if you have not yet read our IPL Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
— Broken Cricket Dreams Cricket Blog (@cricket_broken) April 9, 2021
What Actually Happened
Winner: RCB won by 2 wickets
Player of the Match:Harshal Patel (5/27 & 4*)
Best Figures
Harshal Patel (RCB) – 5/27
Jasprit Bumrah (MI) – 4/26
Most Runs
Chris Lynn – 49 (35)
AB De Villiers – 48 (27)
Moments of The Day
The IPL is full of surprises and memorable moments. Here are my moments of today:
Surprises
Washington Sundar opens….the BATTING: In a slow Chennai pitch, it was surprising to see Sundar & Maxwell bowling a combined total of 1 over (and Sundar taking a wicket). On the other hand, he came out to bat with Virat Kohli in absence of Devdutt Padikkal.
Harshal Patel Announces His Arrival: A major Indian first class player in recent times, he has never really lived up to his potential. Traded two years ago to the Delhi Capitals from RCB, he repaid their faith in style. After conceding 15 in his first over, came back with slower deliveries, yorkers, bowleds to get a 5-fer & almost a hat-trick. Hope it is a sign for big things to come. Also the first player to take a 5-fer against the Mumbai Indians in ALL 14 seasons.
AB De Villiers Is Still The Best In 2021: Last played in IPL 2020’s eliminator, he was timing it beautifully where most struggled!
Honorable Mentions:RCB’s collapse, Maxwell’s fluency, LynnSanity, & decent tall debuts by Marco Jansen & Kyle Jamieson were the other major moments today.
Rahul Dravid Breaks The Internet
But the best moment of all…actually happened right before the game. Rahul Dravid at his hilarious best—check this video out!
Virat Kohli: Dropped the catch and almost injured his eye. The bruise was evident for the rest of the game. Hope it is okay
#BrokenCricketBats: Krunal Pandya actually broke his bat defending Jamieson’s delivery!
The Dropped Catches: The standard of catching in the IPL is depreciating by the year. Brilliant boundary saves & run-outs at one end and dropping dollies on the other. Mohammad Siraj, Virat Kohli, & Rohit Sharma the culprits today.Net
IPL 2021 Points Table
No need to go elsewhere for the Points Table. We will keep updating it in every article!
Teams
Played
Won
Lost
Tied/No-Result
Points
Net Run Rate
1. Royal Challengers Bangalore
1
1
0
0
2
+0.05
2. Mumbai Indians
1
0
1
0
0
-0.05
Chennai Super Kings
Delhi Capitals
Kolkata Knight Riders
Punjab Kings
Rajasthan Royals
Sunrisers Hyderabad
IPL 2021 Points Table
Tomorrow’s Preview
The Chennai Super Kings take on Delhi Capitals at the Wankhede in Mumbai.
MS Dhoni Vs Rishabh Pant
Watch Out For: The return of Ishant Sharma & Amit Mishra (DC)
Questions: Rahane Vs Smith, Tom Curran Vs Umesh Yadav Vs Ishant Sharma
Watch Out For: Faf Du Plessis, Robin Uthappa, Ruturaj Gaikwad (CSK)
Questions:Fate of Suresh Raina, Moeen Ali Vs Sam Curran Vs Dwayne Bravo Vs Imran Tahir
My Prediction: Delhi Capitals win
Comment on your thoughts below and share ahead!
If you have not yet read our IPL Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
From the young Ravindra Jadeja in 2008 & Manish Pandey in 2009 to the inspirational stories of Natarajan & Chakravarthy last year, the IPL has a habit of thrusting new faces into limelight. In 2020, uncapped players like Ravi Bishnoi, Abdul Samad, and Devdutt Padikkal had breakout seasons. Here are some of exciting candidates for 2021:
Finn Allen signed as a replacement for Josh Philippe and announced himself to the international stage with a whirlwind 71(29) against Bangladesh. Will he get a match though in the star-studded RCB line-up?
Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy graduates Mohammad Azharuddeen (WK/batsman), Shahrukh Khan (finisher), and R Sai Kishore (spinner) would be quite handy if they carried their devastating forms earlier this year.
Surprise Packages Paul Valthaty & Rahul Tewatia became household names after bizarre IPL seasons. Would love to watch a Chetan Sakariya, Lukman Meriwala, or someone we have not heard much about (yet) rising to the occasion.
2. Can the Discards Find Their Way Back to the Pack?
Due to COVID-19, ICC events have allowed up to 23-player squads. For India, this has provided the window for discarded players like Prithvi Shaw, Dinesh Karthik, & Sanju Samson to squeeze into the T20 World Cup squad in October later this year.
Since the World Cup is scheduled to be held in India, it is also a golden opportunity for players from other countries like Liam Livingstone, the Currans, & Dawid Malan (England), Allen & Kyle Jamieson (New Zealand), & Riley Meredith & Jhye Richardson (Australia) to impress their selectors.
Eoin Morgan has made it clear he wants England to hold both the World Cup trophies. He has even gone as far as suggesting that rivals Rajasthan Royals will open with Buttler-Stokes combination (to help England prepare for the World Cup).
3. This is it, isn’t it?
Christopher Henry Gayle is 41 and has recently stated his desire to win a third T20I World Cup and even play for 5 more years. Imran Tahir at 42 and Harbhajan Singh at 40 are still spinning oppositions.
It is unlikely any of them will play all the 14 games, but their experience will be crucial in pressure situations.
We should just sit back and enjoy because this might be the final chance we get to watch players like MS Dhoni on the field. With IPL 2022 having a large auction, this year is definitely the end of an era.
4. Can Cricket Get Any Longer? Rule Changes For IPL 2021
The limited overs series between India and England have caused direct rule changes to this IPL. Some of those T20I games took up 5 hours and Suryakumar Yadav’s soft-signal caused uproar. Last year, the double super overs went well into the next day. For IPL 2021,
Teams have been accommodated 90 minutes per innings including the Strategic Time Outs. Penalties have been raised for violation.
No soft-signal for catches and obstruction of field appeals.
Time capped for multiple Super Overs. If time elapses, the game will be declared a tie (one point each).
5. The World Must Come Together as One
Before we can enjoy the spectacle, the real question is will we even have a complete IPL due to the pandemic?
The PSL showcased brilliant display of cricket…for two weeks before the insecurity of the bio-bubble packed up the tournament.
Mitchell Marsh, Josh Hazlewood & Philippe have already withdrawn days from the IPL, and the likes of Axar Patel & Padikkal have tested positive for coronavirus. Cases are rising in India, and several travel concerns still remain.
With mental health, bio-bubble fatigue, and financial security all at stake, only time will decide the fate of this tournament. Let’s just hope that this virus is defeated, the spirit of the IPL remains alive, and the surprises keep on coming.
If you have not yet read our IPL Previews, here is a list of all of them! Check them out and share ahead:
1st. The same old story. Champions for a 5th time. Another wonderful campaign. Here are some of the highlights.
Suryakumar Yadav & Ishan Kishan storm into national spotlight after consistent performances. Add Quinton de Kock’s blazing starts & a certain Rohit Sharma and that was an enviable top order.
The better the finishers, the more consistent a T20 side. Finishing prowess of Kieron Pollard & Hardik Pandya justifies this claim.
James Pattinson, Jasprit Bumrah, & Trent Boult provided the firepower that the fast bowling bowling needed in sluggish UAE pitches.
Injury & COVID-19 News
No major injury or COVID-19 news for the Mumbai Indians as of yet, but cases in Mumbai are rising rapidly. The Road Safety Series in Mumbai has several former cricketers in quarantine. Fingers crossed, but keep checking your news if any local Mumbai players join the MI squad.
How can an already dangerous line-up become even more dangerous? Instead of adding another foreign pace bowler, maybe Jimmy Neesham can slot in at #8. The Pollard-Pandyas-Neesham finishing line up can be quite something.
Watch Out For
Adam Milne, the New Zealand speedstar of 2015 World Cup fame, went missing for a couple of years due to injuries. He has slowly made a comeback in the New Zealand squad through the Big Bash, but can he light up the IPL?
With 11 games in Chennai-Delhi-Kolkata combined, spin will be very handy. Expect Rahul Chahar to be among the wickets. Since Krunal Pandya is more of a batting-allrounder, we may see a bit of Piyush Chawla and Jayant Yadav. Before the final that is.
Where Can Things Go Wrong For the Indians?
Mumbai play first 5 matches at Chennai. While familiarity can be a good thing, let us look at the opposition—strong RCB & Punjab sides and games against spin giants SRH (Rashid, Mujeeb, Nabi), DC (Ashwin, Axar, Amit Mishra), & KKR (Shakib, Varun, Harbhajan, Kuldeep, Pawan Negi).
I am betting against Mumbai Indians for their ‘home’ venues.
Venues & Fixtures
Venues
Chennai- 5, Delhi- 4, Bangalore- 3, Kolkata- 2
Fixtures
9 April: MI vs RCB (Chennai)
13 April: KKR vs MI (Chennai)
17 April: MI vs SRH (Chennai)
20 April: DC vs MI (Chennai)
23 April: PBKS vs MI (Chennai)
29 April: MI vs RR (Delhi)
1 May: MI vs CSK (Delhi)
4 May: SRH vs MI (Delhi)
8 May: RR vs MI (Delhi)
10 May: MI vs KKR (Bangalore)
13 May: MI vs PBKS (Bangalore)
16 May: CSK vs MI (Bangalore)
20 May: RCB vs MI (Kolkata)
23 May: MI vs DC (Kolkata)
25 May: Qualifier 1 (Ahmedabad)
26 May: Eliminator (Ahmedabad)
28 May: Qualifier 2 (Ahmedabad)
30 May: Final (Ahmedabad)
Prediction
Mumbai Indians always seem to bounce back after rough campaign starts. Given the schedule in IPL 2021, I think if they lose 3 or more of the first five, I do not think they can bounce back.
For a change, I am going for a different IPL winner this time around. They will probably win again, but for the fun of it, I have them winning from the reverse order this time.
Prediction
8th
Most Runs
Suryakumar Yadav
Most Wickets
Rahul Chahar
Emerging Player
Marco Jansen
Surprise Package
Jimmy Neesham
X Factor
Kieron Pollard, the leader
Broken Cricket Dream
Third Time…Is Not the Charm. May not win this time
Also, Chris Lynn. Someone of his calibre might have to warm the benches two seasons in a row.
Mumbai Indians Preview Predictions
What do you think of the Mumbai Indians Preview? Your First XI? Will they make the IPL 2021 qualifiers?
