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07:03
It’s MS Dhoni vs Hardik Pandya in blockbuster IPL 2023 opener
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE
Can they shed the tag of perennial underachievers? RCB will play six of their seven home matches in the first four weeks of the competition and Faf du Plessis and his men will be keen to cash in on the early home advantage…
STRENGTH: Top-order batting. Virat Kohli‘s recent return to form augurs well. With Glenn Maxwell likely to be fit, the stars seem to have aligned.
WEAKNESS: Middle-order batting and death-overs bowling. RCB also need their battery of domestic bowlers to back pacemen Mohammed Siraj and Harshal Patel.
OPPORTUNITY: In Josh Hazlewood’s absence, focus is on England’s left-arm seamer Reece Topley to deliver with the new ball. Watch out also for Avinash Singh, the new pacer from J&K.
THREAT: The spin department, especially in home conditions. Wanindu Hasaranga and Shahbaz Ahmed are the top picks.
KEY PLAYERS:
Virat Kohli: Having rediscovered his mojo, his form will be crucial for the team.
Faf du Plessis: The Proteas stalwart led from the front in the previous season and emerged the highest run-getter with 468 runs.
Mohammed Siraj: In Hazlewood’s absence, the pacer will have to up his game, especially at the death.
NEW PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR:
Avinash Singh: The former tennis-ball cricketer from Jammu and Kashmir is untested but could be RCB’s surprise package.
Reece Topley: The left-arm pacer from England will be a vital cog in RCB’s foreign-player line-up.
INJURY WATCH
England allrounder Will Jacks is ruled out. Pace ace Josh Hazlewood and batter Rajat Patidar will miss the initial phase.
DELHI CAPITALS
They have been consistent enough in the last four editions under coach Ricky Ponting, but need that extra push under new captain David Warner. . .
STRENGTH: Powerful top order with David Warner, Prithvi Shaw and Mitchell Marsh.
WEAKNESS: Rishabh Pant’s absence has shaken the balance of the side, especially the middle order. With no Indian wicketkeeper matching Pant’s ability, DC may have to compromise their fast bowling department by dropping an overseas pacer.
OPPORTUNITY: Prithvi Shaw and Sarfaraz Khan, who displayed some good form in domestic cricket, have a chance to show they are ready for the big league.
THREAT: Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav need to swing matches at crucial junctures, but can they deliver consistently in this format?
KEY PLAYERS
David Warner: One of the most prolific IPL batters. Has the experience of leading an IPL team to the trophy.
Axar Patel: Has developed into a strong allrounder. His batting ability could make up for Pant’s absence in the middle.
Anrich Nortje: Led Capitals’ charge in the last three seasons with his searing pace and wicket-taking ability.
NEW PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR:
Aman Khan: Capitals traded Shardul Thakur with this 26-yearold seam-bowling allrounder. Ponting has been very impressed with his power hitting.
Ishant Sharma: Discarded from India’s Test squad, Ishant is back in the IPL. He could make up for the lack of experience in the fast-bowling department. Can be used as an ‘Impact Player’ too.
Mukesh Kumar: Bought for Rs 5 crore, this pacer from Bengal has been making all the right noises.
INJURY WATCH
Rishabh Pant is out with injury. South African pacers Anrich Nortje and Lungi Ngidi will miss the first match since are busy playing the World Cup qualifiers against the Netherlands.
PUNJAB KINGS
Have never won the title and are prone to making wholesale changes after nearly every season. The last time they reached the playoffs was back in 2014. . .
STRENGTH: The batting looks strong with several power-hitters in the line-up. Shikhar Dhawan offers solidity as well as consistency at the top. Liam Livingstone, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma, Shahrukh Khan and Sam Curran can go ballistic.
WEAKNESS: Lack of credible death-overs specialists. Sam Curran is good towards the end with his wide yorkers and slower deliveries but lacks support.
OPPORTUNITY: On paper, have the personnel to maximise boundary hitting.
THREAT: Bowling attack lacks a bit of the oomph that defines their batting.
KEY PLAYERS
Shikhar Dhawan: The captain, known to keep his cool in crunch situations, is also the second highest run getter in IPL history.
Sam Curran: The star allrounder helped CSK win their fourth IPL title in the 2021 season before giving the last season a miss due to back injury.
Arshdeep Singh: Was India’s main man at the T20 World Cup in Australia. Is known to swing the new ball both ways and then bowl toe-crushing yorkers at the death.
NEW PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR
Sam Curran: Punjab picked Curran at the auction for Rs 18. 50 crore, making the Englishman the most expensive player in IPL history. His addition to the team brings in a lot of depth in both the bowling and batting departments.
Sikandar Raza: The Zimbabwean has been in brilliant form over the last two years. Starred for his country at the 2022 T20 World Cup in Australia. Also helped Lahore Qalandars win the PSL this year. A handy spinner too.
Vidwath Kaverappa: Remember the name. Pace-bowling sensation from Karnataka who impressed one and all in his debut season (2022-23). Gets awkward bounce and has a mean yorker. Was the second-highest wicket-taker in the 2022-23 Syed Mushtaq Ali T20 with 18 wickets from 8 games.
INJURY WATCH
Englishman Jonny Bairstow continues to recover from a leg injury that he suffered in September last year while playing golf. Liam Livingstone suffered a knee injury during England’s tour to Pakistan last year and is likely to miss the first couple of matches.
SUNRISERS HYDERABAD
A new-look team with a new captain in Aiden Markram. Most of their overseas players come into IPL in red-hot form. It’ll be a toss-up between Mayank and Bhuvneshwar to lead in the first two games as the South African players are not available. . .
STRENGTH: Potent bowling line-up comprising Umran Malik, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Marco Jansen, T Natarajan, Fazalhaq Farooki, Washington Sundar and Adil Rashid. Plenty of variety.
WEAKNESS: Below-par performance of domestic players.
OPPORTUNITY: The likes of Rahul Tripathi, Abdul Samad, Abhishek Sharma, Vivrant Sharma and Samarth Vyas can prove their mettle.
THREAT: The challenge is to ensure Natarajan and Washington are back to full fitness and Bhuvneshwar stays injury-free.
KEY PLAYERS
Aiden Markram: In great form. Was player of the tournament in CA T20 and was part of the T20I in which South Africa chased down a record total set by the West Indies.
Harry Brook: It will be the Englishman’s first IPL experience. He’s been scoring centuries for fun in Test cricket.
Umran Malik: Fast and exciting. Opponents will have enough data on him by now, but he can beat the best by sheer pace.
NEW PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR
Adil Rashid: Will hope to fill the big shoes of Rashid Khan.
Harry Brook: Unknown commodity but has the licence to go bang-bang in the middle.
Aiden Markram: His batting and man-management will be tested.
INJURY WATCH
All are fit. SRH must keep an eye on the workload of Bhuvneshwar, Washington and Natarajan.
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS
The two-time champions grossly underperformed last season, finishing seventh. Can the new management comprising head coach Chandrakant Pandit, bowling coach Bharat Arun and captain Nitish Rana deliver this time?
STRENGTH: Allrounders. In Russell, Narine, Hasan and Thakur, they have players who can be useful with both bat and ball. Then there are Venkatesh Iyer, David Wiese and Shakib Al Hasan who can play more than just one role.
WEAKNESS: Unsettled look at the top. Prone to using various opening combinations. May miss someone to anchor the innings.
OPPORTUNITY: The likes of Russell, Narine and Venkatesh Iyer have the potential to single-handedly pull off a win. Then there’s the presence of some very hard hitters in Litton Das, David Wiese, Narayan Jagadeeshan and Afghanistan’s Rahmanullah Gurbaz.
THREAT: If their leading lights fail, KKR may lose direction. Too much dependence on individuals.
KEY PLAYERS
Nitish Rana: It remains to be seen whether the added responsibility of captaincy helps his batting.
Shardul Thakur: Apart from intelligent bowling, he is very useful as a lower-order batter.
Andre Russell: Always the key man. If he gets going, job is done.
NEW PLAYERS TO WATCH OUT FOR:
Litton Das: Bangladesh wicketkeeper-batter has been on fire in recent times.
David Wiese: Not exactly young at 37, but this ex-South African-now Namibian player can make useful contributions. Back in the IPL after seven long years.
Narayan Jagadeeshan: The Tamil Nadu wicketkeeper-batter can be an answer to KKR’s opening woes, given that he has been in excellent form with five consecutive centuries in List A cricket.
INJURY WATCH
Regular skipper Shreyas Iyer is out with back injury. It is not clear when he will be available.
(Text by Manuja Veerappa, Arani Basu, Hindol Basu, JAC Gladson, Saibal Bose)
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