Cricket Tournaments

Jonathan Vandiar

Jonathan Vandiar put on show a spectacular display as the Highveld Lions stunned the Mumbai Indians in what was the inaugural match (second edition) of the Airtel Champion League Twenty 20 competition. Vandiar’s knock of 71 included four fours and 3 sixes at a strike rate nearing 150.

Having won the toss, Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar chose to field on what looked like a green wicket with some pace and bounce in it. Being the favourites not just for this match but the tournament, all eyes were on Mumbai as they took the field with the Bullring buzzing all around them. Alviro Petersen and Jonathan Vandiar got the hosts off to a flier before the duo were involved in a controversial run out as Vandiar managed to ground his bat in seconds before Petersen did.

At that stage, it looked like Vandiar should have sacrificed his wicket. But, the lions will be thanking their starts that, that was not the case as Vandiar lit up the Bullring with scintillating shots all round the wicket. Both Cameron and Van Jaarsveld failed to provide the impetus as the two M’s, Murtaza and Malinga accounted for them. The lions most experienced campaigner and a “test match batsman” (so as to say) , Neil McKenzie walked in. The duo put on 64 for the 4th wicket and took the score to 145 before Vandiar slapped one of malinga straight to extra cover.

Nevertheless, there was no stopping McKenzie who played his trademark pulls, flicks and drives en route his 56. The hosts lost a flurry of wickets in the end but McKenzie’s innings kept the Lions together as they ended up with a mammoth total of 186. Zaheer Khan’s last over cost a plenty as the former looked rusty following his shoulder injury and was carted all over the park by McKenzie and company.

The bowling for the Mumbai Indian’s looked lacklustre to say the least. Murtaza bowled well in patches while Malinga was the stand out. Zaheer looked completely out of rhythm.

Sachin Tendulkar and Shikhar Dhawan came in with a huge task ahead of them. The Indians started of in brilliant fashion albeit lucky as the opening duo put on 83 before phangiso accounted for Dhawan. Having survived an early LBW shout Sachin Tendulkar looked classy as ever en route his innings of 69.

The mumbai team tried to bat around Sachin Tendulkar, but once sachin was dismissed by Burger, the doors were open for the Lions once again. Sachin fell trying to make room for himself as he missed the ball completely and was bowled. Duminy played well until a point where slogging was the only bail out. Duminy is more of a touch player and out right slogging is clearly not his forte.

Once Sachin fell, Duminy got stuck in and failed to farm the strike before he was dismissed by De Bruyn for 30. Once again Mumbai’s fate rested on how Pollard played, whether it was just a cameo or a little more than one. The latter ensuring a win. However, once again Pollard fell after a brief cameo of 19. Pollard fell to a brilliant yorker from Burger. Burger, was the game breaker as his spell in the latter half of the match helped the Lions get rid of the two batting giants of the Indians in Tendulkar and Pollard.

Although the Lions won by just 9 runs, the approach from the Mumbai Indians arguably was wrong. Keeping wickets in hand is not a bad thing but in this format one senses it tend to provide a false sense of security. Huge win for the warriors, while the Mumbai Indians have a lot to look at beginning from the selection of their 11. If Ryan McLaren had to bowl just one over then why not have Bravo instead of him, the latter being more of a batting all rounder. Lot of things for the unit to look at, the usage of JP Duminy and the bowling combination.

The lions would hope to keep the momentum when they play the South Australians in a day’s time. Mumbai would like to make use of the short break that they have so as to come up with a better performance.

Cometh the hour, cometh the man. Suresh Raina stood up to be counted for the Chennai Super Kings as M S Dhoni’s men got the better of the Mumbai Indians in the title clash of IPL 3. In front of a capacity Sunday evening crowd at the D Y Patil stadium, Raina first blasted an unbeaten 57 from 35 balls to help his side recover from a slow start and post a highly challenging 168 for 5.

Then, when it was Chennai’s turn to defend the score, the youngster chipped in by dismissing Harbhajan Singh and also took a magnificent running catch to dismiss the dangerous Saurabh Tiwary as Mumbai’s batting fell apart. In a baffling move, the home side sent in Kieron Pollard at the fall of the sixth wicket, by which time the required rate had sky-rocketed to nearly 17.

And, so despite a last-ditch, big-hitting effort of 27 from 10 balls from the tall West Indian, Mumbai were left stranded, eventually falling 22 runs short.

There was nothing dramatic at the start of Chennai’s innings to suggest that they would end up posting a winning total. After winning the toss and promptly deciding to bat first, Matthew Hayden and Murali Vijay were kept quiet in the wake of some accurate bowling from Mumbai bowlers.

Dilhara Fernando was particularly impressive, mixing his deliveries up very well and keeping the batsmen on their toes. Still, Chennai’s openers did well to add to keep their wickets in tact and add 44 for the first wicket at a steady pace.

But, once Vijay fell to Fernando, trying to break the shackles, the momentum clearly shifted in Mumbai’s direction. Hayden followed soon after struggling for his 17. And, with S Badrinath also not firing, Chennai had their back to the wall at 67 for 3 in the 12th over.

Chennai needed something special to recover. And, it came in the form of Raina, who timed and the placed the ball with ludicrous ease, on a pitch where most other struggled. Raina was lucky to be dropped twice in two overs.

But, to his credit he rode his luck. He played some superb lofted shots against Zaheer Khan and Kieron Pollard and also drove on the up, finding the gap with precision.

The left-hander raced to his half-century as Mumbai were made to pay dearly for their misses. While Raina, was brilliant at one end, it was actually skipper Dhoni who began the turnaround by smashing a couple of boundaries after the fall of the early wickets.

However, such was the impact of Raina’s knock that everything else paled in comparison. Chennai did not mind it though as they went into the mid-innings break having the upper hand.

The match was far from over as Mumbai had the arsenal in their ranks to chase it down. But, Chennai made things extremely tough for them right from the start. Doug Bollinger not only bowled a tight line, he also got an edgy Shikhar Dhawan to nick one in his opening over.

At the other end, R Ashwin carried on with the good work he had been doing throughout the tournament. For a change he wasn’t among the wickets, but kept runs at a premium, which aided Dhoni add extra pressure.

Mumbai did shine briefly during the chase. Sachin Tendulkar and Abhishek Nayar combined to bring their side back on track with a 66-run partnership. Tendukar found the boundary at regular intervals while Nayar hit a couple of big sixes off the spinners. However, once the partnership was broken, following a mix-up, things fell apart.

Mumbai did not help their cause by holding back Pollard for the last three overs. It was 114 for 6 by the time walked and there was just too much for him to do. He did give it his best shot, slamming three fours and two mighty sixes in the space of 9 deliveries.

It was far from enough though. In the end, Mumbai were left ruining the missed opportunities that let Raina get away and swing the final in Chennai’s favour.

Another sparkling knock of 89 not out by Mumbai Indians skipper Sachin Tendulkar helped his side recover from a jittery start and post a challenging 174 for 5, batting first against Rajasthan Royals. And, with the batsmen from the latter side hell-bent on committing hara-kiri, the Mumbai bowlers did not have to shed much sweat for a comprehensive win.

As many as three Royals’ batsmen ran themselves out, something which definitely would not have pleased the Sunday night crowd at Jaipur. The innings continued to stumble along as no partnerships were built and, eventually, Rajasthan lost by a disappointing margin of 37 runs.

The story of the match was the innings of one man versus the rest on a difficult pitch for the batsmen. And that man was, guess who, Sachin Tendulkar. After winning the toss and electing to field, Rajasthan were off to the best of starts, all thanks to Shane Watson, who bounced out two Mumbai batsmen.

Both Ambati Rayudu and Saurabh Tiwary were found out as Watson gave them the chin music. Before that though, he got the all important scalp of Sanath Jayasuriya for 1. The politician from Sri Lanka, who was recalled after being made to sit out for a few games, punched one tentatively to end his short stay at the crease.

Mumbai were in all sorts of trouble at 30 for 3, when JP Duminy joined Sachin. The left-hander from South Africa gave ample support to his skipper as they went about rebuilding the innings.

While Sachin went for the big strokes, Duminy ensured that he gave his captain most of the strike. Sachin was in his elements throughout his knock, but his much-awaited tussle with opposite number Shane Warne was the highlight of the game.

Even after all these years, the Mumbai bomber showed scant respect to the legendary spinners. He charged down the track and hit Warne inside out more than once. And when Warne pitched one short, he had the answer ready with his cut.

Although Duminy left Sachin with the score on 93, Sachin continued to blaze away. He slammed Siddharth Trivedi for two mighty sixes in the last over of the innings as Mumbai ended their innings on a high.

There was nothing noteworthy in Rajasthan’s batting effort. Michael Lumb began with two crispy boundaries, but Dhawal Kulkarni had his revenge pretty soon when he had him caught by Duminy.

Naman Ojha did nothing wrong to get dismissed for a duck. He was at the receiving end of an unplayable outswinger from Zaheer Khan, which he somehow managed to nick. What followed next was bizarre, to put it lightly, as three consecutive wickets fell to run-outs.

Shane Watson was the first victim, and the most crucial one at that. Faiz Fazal had run halfway down the pitch, leaving Watson with no option but to respond to his call. Fazal, himself, was the next victim, not knowing where to go. Abhishek Jhunjhunwala, who batted well for his 22 until then, was beaten by a strong throw from Tiwary.

By the time Yusuf Pathan came into bat, the score read a miserable 62 for 5. Rajasthan needed well over 100 runs at better than 12 runs per over. On his day, it would have been a cakewalk for Pathan. But, this was Sachin’s day.

And so, he fell without contributing much as the script got murkier for Rajasthan. Aditya Dole and Abhishek Raut struck some lusty blows towards the end. All that did though was reduce the victory margin.

Ambati Rayudu’s sensational, unbeaten 55 off a mere 29 balls and Saurabh Tiwary’s rebuilding effort of 44 from 35 balls were responsible for Mumbai Indians recovering from a mid-innings collapse and posting 178 for 5 in their game against the struggling Deccan Chargers at the Brabourne Stadium.

The total was too good for Deccan, who were never in the hunt during the chase. The entire team succumbed to 115 all out before the stipulated overs and lost by an embarrassing 63-run margin.

Despite a professional performance by the Mumbai bowlers, it has to be said that the turning point of the match was the partnership between Rayudu and Tiwary. The duo added an impressive 65 in 7.4 overs at a stage when Mumbai where crumbling after a confident start.

The home team were cruising at 53 for no loss in the seventh over when things turned murky. Pragyan Ojha had Shikhar Dhawan stumped for 14 and in his next over cleaned up the dangerous Dwayne Bravo for 2. At the other end, Rahul Sharma claimed the ever so crucial scalp of Sachin Tendukar, who was well-set on 35.

Things could have gone horribly wrong for Mumbai had Rayudu and Tiwary not held things together. Mumbai were well-aided but Deccan’s fielders and some rather poor bowling in the death overs. Tiwary was lucky to survive on more than one occasion even as the bowlers went for over 12 an over in the last five overs of the innings.

Batting sensibly, Rayudu and Tiwary were initially prepared to get themselves in, at the same time ensuring that the run-rate did not come down drastically. And, once they were in, there was no stopping them. Rahul could have had Tiwary in his return spell, instead Herschelle Gibbs deflected it over the long-on boundary.

The fact that Deccan’s best fielder came up with that effort symbolized the agony of the Chargers. As if that wasn’t enough, Monish Mishra couldn’t latch on to a low offering from the same batsman. This was after the bowler had already been lofted for a maximum.

At the other end, Rayudu had better control. He slogged Andrew Symonds for a mighty off the last ball of the 16th overs. And, things only got worse for Deccan. Ojha did manage to pick up his third wicket by ending Tiwary’s important knock, but Rayudu continued his merry ways.

Jaskaran Singh was taken for 20 off the penultimate over, which featured two dismissive fours and a beautifully lofted, inside-out six. Kieron Pollard also threw his bat around a gathered three boundaries as Mumbai ended their innings on a high.

There was nothing noteworthy to talk about in Deccan’s chase. Gibbs hit a couple of boundaries off Harbhajan Singh and Adam Gilchrist lashed Lasith Malinga for a six. That was about it though. Gibbs, Gilchrist and VVS Laxman all few before the side crossed 40. Symonds, with 21, ended up being highest score, too low even in the shortest format of the game.

Harbhajan Singh has always been a capable bat, but he hasn’t done well enough to be categorized as an all-rounder. Against Deccan Chargers though, he came up with a truly all-round effort to lead Mumbai Indians to yet another victory.

First, it was his blistering knock of 49 not out from a mere 18 balls that saw Mumbai garner as many as 52 runs in the last three overs. The late onslaught meant they ended on an impressive 172 after struggling at 119 for 7 following Sachin Tendulkar’s crucial dismissal.

Buoyed by his awesome effort with the bat, Harbhajan, who was asked to open the bowling by Sachin, the removed Adam Gilchrist in the very first over. It was a methodical execution as Harbhajan Singh went round the wicket and denied any width to Gilchrist, who tried to cut one, but the sharp edge found an agile Sachin in the slips.

The celebrations to follow said it all. Harbhajan added the wickets of T Suman and Jaskaran Singh too later in the day to end with match-winning figures of 3 for 31. But, surely this time it was his batting effort which made the bigger difference and saw Mumbai romp home by 41 runs.

After being put into bat by Gilchrist, Mumbai made a steady start, but failed to maintain the momentum. Shikhar Dhawan was trapped in front of the stumps for 8 by a brilliant Jaskaran yorker. And, Deccan thereafter ensured that they had Mumbai on the mat, despite Sachin’ presence at one end. R P Singh was especially lethal, sending back Dwayne Bravo and Saurabh Tiwary in the same over. At 68 for 3, Sachin needed a dependable partner.

Unfortunately, all he could do was helplessly wait and watch as one batsman after the other ditched him. Young Ambati Rayadu went for a senseless slog against left-arm Pragyan Ojha and was stranded mid-way down the pitch. R Satish did not do any better, also falling prey to Ojha.

At this stage, Mumbai needed Kieron Pollard to show why he is ‘worth’ so much. Instead, he top-edged a short one from Jaskaran to leave Mumbai in further strife.

All this while, Sachin continued to find the gaps and the boundaries at will, without taking any risks at all. It was yet another illustration that there is place for sane play even in 20-20. With nine wonderfully timed boundaries, Sachin raised his fourth 50 in the IPL.

The pressure of accelerating the scoring though got to his and RP Singh had his third scalp. When Sachin departed, Deccan’s morale was sky-high. But, not for long as Harbhajan’s blitz grounded them.

The late momentum gained saw Mumbai take the field with renewed vigour. And the results were instantly visible. Gilchrist’s loss did not help Deccan’s cause, but they still had a batting line-up good enough to overhaul the total. It wasn’t too be though.

Herschelle Gibbs’ brief flurry of 27 from 16, which comprised two typically wristy sixes, gave them hope. But, once he was dismissed off a high full toss from Zaheer Khan, the innings crumbed. Rohit Sharma held things together for a while. However, for the second game running, it wasn’t enough. They needed someone to do a Harbhajan. But, the man was in the opposition.

What was supposed to be a tough chase for Mumbai Indians at the Brabourne Stadium against Chennai Super Kings, was transformed into a rather easy victory, thanks to yet another superlative effort by skipper Sachin Tendulkar (72) and an equally important, whirlwind 56 by his opening partner Shikhar Dhawan.

Mumbai had to score 181, in reply to Chennai’s imposing 180 for 2, and got home convincingly in the penultimate over, with five wickets in tact. The opening partnership of 92 in under nine overs was extremely crucial in the chase. The quickfire efforts of Sachin and Dhawan ensured that the required run rate was always under control. And, as such, there was no pressure on the batsmen to come.

Mumbai planned their chase extremely well. It was Dhawan who went after the bowlers at the start, while Sachin ensured that he gave the youngster ample strike. Even as Albie Morkel kept things tight at one end, Dhawan went after L Balaji, Joginder Sharma and even spinner Shadab Jakati, hitting some ferocious boundaries off their bowling as well as three huge sixes.

He never looked in any sort of trouble against any of the bowlers, which was the most striking aspect of his batting. The fact that even Sachin was content to take the back seat and watch the action unfold from the non-striker’s end said a lot about the quality of his innings. As such, Dhawan could only have got himself out.

And that is exactly what happened when he tried to go after Jakati once too often. The ball ballooned high in the air, and Chennai were lucky to have their best fielder, Suresh Raina, in position to take the catch.

Dhawan’s dismissal gave Chennai hope, though only a faint one as Mumbai were halfway past the target. Still, Muttiah Muralitharan worked his charm and trapped Saurabh Tiwary plumb in the front for 2, a rare failure for the youngster during this IPL. The door was again opened slightly by Chennai when Joginder Sharma managed to dislodge Rajagopal Sathish’s stumps.

At 120 for 3 in the 14th over, Chennai sensed they had a sniff. However, this is when Sachin stepped in and decided to seal it in Mumbai’s favour. The authoritative six he hit off Murali not only reminded one of their yesteryear duels, but also showed that Sachin was determined to prove who the boss was.

With a mixture of well-calculated strokes and some elegant drives, he brought Mumbai to the brink of victory. Kieron Pollard, who hasn’t got much of a chance to prove what he is worth, showed some glimpses, striking the ball as clean as a whistle en route to his 9-ball 20. And, though both were dismissed before the target was achieved, they had done enough to take Mumbai to safety.

The win did not look such an easy proposition earlier in the day, when Chennai recovered from 38 for 2 to post 180. Suresh Raina was the chief architect of the recovery.

The talented left-hander struck the ball with ease during his magnificent, unbeaten 83 off 52 balls. He found the perfect foil in S Badrinath, who contributed 55* from 45. Thanks to them, at the halfway stage, Chennai looked favourites. But, midway through the Mumbai innings the equation had completely changed.

It’s been over two years since the cash-rich Indian premier league showed us the trailer to the movie of what was to come. One thought the trailer was flattering to deceive. However, that wasn’t the case to be. The Indian premier league has charged forward and is now in some eyes second only to the World cup which happens once in four years.

The fans/ cricket lovers/ the players just can’t seem to have enough of the IPL and want it to come and stay for long. Well, the good thing for them is that the IPL unlike the world cup is there every year. Many players have been seen trying to focus on limited Overs cricket. The big question is had the Cash rich IPL not been there would competitive 30-34 year olds make that decision; would they step down had the cash rich IPL not been there?

The most recent of all was Brett Lee, who at the age of 33 stepped down from test match cricket to prolong his career in the shorter formats of the game. In the past year, along with lee several notable cricketers have stepped down from the test level and are either doing the freelance role or playing the shorter formats for their respective countries. Players including the likes of Oram, Styris, Bond, Flintoff and now lee have done so.

Mind you, all these players are not overly old and are well under the retirement age—under 35 (if there’s something like that). A lot has been spoken about how lucrative the league has been and its exploits. What’s more is there are another two franchisees to be added for the fourth edition of the IPL. There will be a fresh auction, all players will come into the pool again and even iconic players can be traded. The league never ceases to amaze me. The 3rd edition of the IPL is less than a week away and the excitement is mounting with every hour.

People across India are counting hours before they get to see their favourite players on the grand stage. Now, delving into what the 3rd season of the IPL has in store for us, which are the teams that look good to bag the stunning gold embedded Indian map. Teams have been training for over a week now, and managers have focussed more on player availability rather than just player name.

Deccan chargers

Deccan chargers: After some controversy whether the chargers would play the tournament or not due to division of the Andhra state, the news is they will be playing and look strong as ever. Under the inspirational captaincy of former Australian vice-captain and wicket keeper, Adam Gilchrist the Deccan chargers on paper at least look the strongest unit of them all. The champions of the last edition the chargers, wouldn’t raise an eyebrow if they go on to win this edition of the IPL as well.
Owner: Deccan Chronicle
Captain: Adam Gilchrist
Coach: Darren Lehmann
Game breakers (batting): Adam Gilchrist, Andrew Symonds, Herschelle Gibbs, Dwayne Smith.
Knock over’s (bowling): Kemar Roach, Fidel Edwards, RP Singh, Ryan Harris.
Fielding: Rohit Sharma, Andrew Symonds, Herschelle Gibbs, Dwayne Smith.
The chargers look a good side all round and seem to have all aspects covered. Their only concern would be their dismal record at their home ground, but the good thing for them being they don’t have a lot of matches to play there.

Bangalore Royal Challengers

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Finalists of the last year’s edition, the challengers showed the world a new side to their cricket after a dismal performance in the inaugural edition of the IPL. Labeled as the “Test team” by critics the challengers showed their true worth by showing everyone how dangerous they can be and proving that T20 is not a game that can be decided on paper.
Owner: Dr. Vijay Mallya
Captain: Anil Kumble
Coach: Ray Jennings
Game breakers (batting): Manish Pandey, Ross Taylor, Kevin Pietersen, Cameron White.
Knock over’s (bowling): Dale Steyn
Fielding: Roelof Van de Merwe, Cameron White, Steven Smith.
Their new look squad doesn’t look the “test team” anymore with White, Taylor and Pietersen who can each give it a fair whack. Along with the blend of youth they have good seniors in Rahul Dravid, Mark Boucher, Jacques Kallis and Anil Kumble. They shouldn’t be underestimated as they showed how dangerous they could be. Loaded with South Africans, perhaps that’s what perhaps was their undoing last time—chokers. Jokes apart the royal challengers do have one of the best spinners in the tournament in their skipper Anil Kumble and also the Best ODI bowler in the world, Dale Steyn. A sure team to watch out for.

Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings: Finalists of the first edition and semi finalists of the one down in South Africa, the Chennai super kings have been one of the most consistent teams in the IPL. They have the best set of all rounder’s and a good blend of youth and old with a very ‘calm’ captain in Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
Owner: India Cements Ltd.
Captain: Mahendra Singh Dhoni
Coach: Stephen Fleming
Game breakers (batting): Matthew Hayden, Albie Morkel, Jacob Oram, Justin Kemp, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Suresh Raina.
Knock over’s (bowling): Makhaya Ntini, Muttiah Muralitharan
Fielding: Suresh Raina and Justin Kemp.
A very strong team overall, a very strong opener in Hayden and good players to nurdle and take the neck by the scruff if required. Their only shortcoming is their bowling, they need to strengthen it if they have to make it to the final four. A team filled with all rounder’s (and good ones at that too), it would be very interesting to see which or how many out of the four will be selected. You’d like to think that Albie Morkel should be an automatic choice however the same cannot be said about Jacob Oram due to his inconsistent performances in the last season. Justin Kemp has been in good form for the cobras and he should get a nod ahead of the tall black cap all rounder.

Delhi Daredevils

Delhi Daredevils: The daredevils like the Chennai super kings have been a very consistent side in the IPL too. They made the semi finals in both the editions and looked good to go further. Somehow they seem to give the South African image about them, they lose/ choke in tense matches. On paper they are second only to the Deccan chargers and look as if they are capable of overpowering any unit. A change in the head was seen with Virender Sehwag stepping down from captaincy as he wanted to concentrate on his game.
Owner: GMR Holdings
Captain: Gautam Gambhir
Coach: Greg Shippered
Game breakers (batting): Virender Sehwag, Tillakaratne Dilshan, AB De Villiers, David Warner
Knock over’s (bowling): Dirk Nannes, Daniel Vettori
Fielding: Tillakaratne Dilshan, AB De Villiers, David Warner
A very good unit and like the chargers have got everything they could ask for in the T20 arena. If they get on to a good start in the tournament there could be no stopping them. They would be hoping to go one step further and win the league. It will be very interesting to see who the 4 foreign players will be considering the nick Warner is in, it would be very tough to leave him out. However, Dilshan, de Villiers, Vettori and nannes all have been very successful for the daredevils. Surmisably, it could be a toss up between Dilshan and Warner or Vettori and Warner considering the other spinner Mishra will play.

Mumbai Indians

Mumbai Indians: The side of the master— Sachin Tendulkar. The great man has been in tremendous form for India for a long time now. He’s seeing the 51/2 cherry as the size of a football. The Mumbai Indians failed to make it to the semi finals on both the previous occasions. However, a lot seems to have changed since then, and the odds are in their favour this time round. Mumbai’s biggest and most recent pick is that of West Indian giant buy Kieron Pollard. The West Indian was sold for over 6 crores. If he does justice to half the price he was brought for the Mumbai Indians should pick up the trophy.
Owner: Reliance Industries Limited
Captain: Sachin Tendulkar
Coach: Robin Singh, Jhonty Rhodes
Game breakers (batting): Sanath Jayasuriya, Sachin Tendulkar, Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo and Abhishek Nayar.
Knock over’s (bowling): Lasith Malinga, Zaheer Khan.
Fielding: Kieron Pollard, Abhishek Nayar, Dwayne Bravo.
With Jhonty Rhodes being their fielding coach you could expect the Mumbai Indians should be from the top draw. Mumbai Indians have a huge fan following (largely due to the presence of Sachin Tendulkar) and their fans will be hoping that they do come up with something special this year. Twenty 20 is not Sachin Tendulkar’s most preferred format but you can never tell with the master. If great players can adapt to any form of the game, then Sachin Tendulkar surely can and you wouldn’t hold it against to him to carry his team single handedly towards the title.

Kings XI Punjab

Kings XI Punjab: The men from Punjab have a new king to work under. The managerial unit at the Kings XI Punjab have decided that it is best that Yuvraj Singh plays as player and not as captain as he is more efficient as player. Sri Lankan skipper Kumar Sangakkara has been appointed captain and would be able to share a good rapport with Tom Moody as moody was Lanka’s ex coach. The men from Punjab would look to replicate their performance of the inaugural edition of the IPL if not better it and go all the way.
Owner: Preity Zinta, Ness Wadia, Karan Paul and Mohit Burman.
Captain: Kumar Sangakkara
Coach: Tom Moody
Game breakers (batting): Yuvraj Singh, Shaun Marsh, Mahela Jayawardene, Kumar Sangakkara.
Knock over’s (bowling): Brett Lee, Shreesanth, I Pathan.
Fielding: Mohammad Kaif, Yuvraj Singh, Brett lee.
For me, if the Kings XI Punjab have to stay in good stead they would have to ensure that ace pace man Brett lee is fit and raring to go. If that’s the case is death bowling and lower order striking will be invaluable and could go a long way in deciding the fate of the franchisee.

Rajasthan Royals

Rajasthan Royals: The champions from the first edition of the IPL. Looked one of the most ordinary twenty 20 side on paper when the auction first concluded. However, as I mentioned before T20 isn’t done and dusted on paper. Under the tactical and inspirational captaincy of Australian spin bowling legend Shane Warne. Warne showed that he can weave his magic on not just the cricket ball but also on people as he did here. Youngsters namely Ravindra Jadeja, Yusuf Pathan and Swapnil Asnodkar owe their careers to Shane Warne as he identified their talent and helped them exhibit it on the world stage.
Owner: Emerging Media, Shilpa Shetty and Raj Kundra.
Captain: Shane Warne
Coach: Shane Warne
Game breakers (batting): Graeme Smith, Yusuf Pathan, Adam Voges
Knock over’s (bowling): Shaun Tait, Shane Warne
Fielding: Adam Voges, Abhishek Jhunjunwala
Shane Warne’s tactical role as captain and coach of the team will have a huge role to play if the Royals have to emulate their first season’s performance. It is very possible for them to re do that especially with the royals having one of the fastest bowlers in the world (if not the fastest-currently) in shaun tait. Tait has been in brilliant form after his comeback into the Australian side early this year. His rhythm seems good and he had recently clocked over a 160 clicks in a T20 match against Pakistan. Warne along with this bowling will have to motivate the boys how he did so in 2008. A very well knit side and are certainly the dark horse of the tournament.

Kolkata Knight Riders

Kolkata Knight Riders: Dismal performances in the last two editions of the IPL in spite of having a decent set of players leaves Kolkata as a ‘not-considered’ option amongst the people in India. Having said this, this might just be what the Knight riders may need as they have been the most popular and glamorous side ever since they burst onto the scene largely due to their owner Shah Rukh Khan being the Badshah of bollywood. A lot of controversies surrounded the knights which hampered them adversely. Racism rows, conflicts between the coach, captain and owner, and the whole strategy of multiple captains; all turned out to be KKR’s undoing in the end. Hence, SRK finally decided to re instate Sourav Ganguly as captain and replace John Buchannan with Dav whatmore. Kolkata will be without the services of Brendon McCullum this year due to his commitments with the national side.
Owner: Shah Rukh Khan, Juhi Chawla, Jai Mehta.
Captain: Sourav Ganguly
Coach: Dav Whatmore
Game breakers (batting): Brad Hodge, David Hussey, Chris Gayle.
Knock over’s (bowling): Shane Bond, Ishant Sharma, Charl Langeveldt.
Fielding: Brad Hodge, David Hussey, Angelo Mathews.
KKR bagged New Zealand quickie Shane bond, who after severing his ties with the rebel Indian Cricket League is now eligible to play for the Knights. He’s a pretty good buy and should reap his 6 crore worth returns. KKR are certainly my pick of the tournament and it is how Ganguly and whatmore function together will decide the fate of this wonderful side.

This year’s IPL has a lot to offer, in fact the IPL itself this year has a lot to offer. They have the Huge auction coming up later this year and also unveiling of the new franchisees mid way through the IPL. The IPL is back in its home nation and is set to thrill. With media playing its part in the form of hoardings and advertisements this year’s IPL promises to be an “enthralling” one to say the least.