Another season of the Indian Premier League begins on Saturday when the eight franchises battle it out for the biggest domestic title in the T20 game. The stars of the sport have all been put together once again for what should be another high quality campaign.
Chennai Super Kings picked up the crown on their return to the competition last term and they will be looking to make a successful defence of their title. Seven other franchises have recruited strongly in the hope of dethroning them.
Recent Winners
2018 – Chennai Super Kings
2017 – Mumbai Indians
2016 – Sunrisers Hyderabad
2015 – Mumbai Indians
2014 – Kolkata Knight Riders
2013 – Mumbai Indians
2012 – Kolkata Knight Riders
2011 – Chennai Super Kings
2010 – Chennai Super Kings
2009 – Deccan Chargers
The Format
We are with the same format that we played under last season with the eight teams playing each other home and away in the initial phase of the tournament. At the end of the league phase the top four sides will head into the play-off system which sees the top two meet for a direct route to the final, third and fourth battling for a place in the semi-final where they take on the loser of that first game for the other place in the championship showdown.
Favourites
The Sunrisers Hyderabad go into the campaign as the 9/2 favourites to land the title. We are used to seeing these franchise teams change regularly but I’m not sure many expected to see Shikhar Dhawan leave the Sunrisers at any point. Jonny Bairstow and Vijay Shankar look good signings and if Rashid Khan goes well again they look like being a tough nut to crack but they will weaken the longer the season goes on and that would make me nervous about taking him.
The second favourites for this competition are another former winner in the Mumbai Indians. They will need their senior batsmen to deliver a much better campaign than they did last year. Rohit Sharma had an IPL to forget last term, something which is unlikely to happen again, Mumbai have plenty of top class pace bowlers but if there is a concern for them the longer the campaign goes on it would come in the form of the lack of top quality spin options. You’ll get a run at 11/2 but they’re not for me.
Contenders
The Kolkata Knight Riders go into the campaign as the 6/1 third favourites to land the title and there is a lot to like about the men from Eden Gardens this term. They are loaded with power at the top of their innings and have the best spin attack in the competition and they are two things which can take a team a long way in this tournament. The concern is that they’ll lose men the longer the campaign goes on but it is hard to see them being out of the top four initially.
The defending champions Chennai Super Kings are also 6/1 to retain the title. I guess the first question is, is this the year they are too old? Many of their side are getting no younger and while experience can be key, too much of it can be a problem. If a couple of those experienced players run hot then the Super Kings are entitled to be in the mix. They will surely make the top four, unless this is the year that they are too old.
For once the Royal Challengers Bangalore do not go into the campaign as the favourites to win it. Usually when a side has Virat Kohli in its midst it is favourites to win the tournament but that is not the case here and the Challengers might benefit from that. Kohli and AB de Villiers set a series batting standard and if Shimron Hetmyer can force his way into the reckoning he could do real damage at the Chinnaswamy. As ever though you worry for their bowling attack and it is them that will determine whether their 7/1 quote is big or not.
Outsiders
There has been a lot of change in Delhi ahead of the 2019 campaign. Gone is their Daredevils moniker to be replaced by the term Capitals and to bring in the new era they have claimed the big trade for Shikhar Dhawan, who should solve their top order problems in one hit. Delhi have a lot of good bowling options this year and their young Indian batsmen have had another year of cricket to establish themselves at a professional level. You could argue they should be a lot shorter than 8/1.
Rajasthan Royals will be the English fans team for the tournament with Jos Buttler, Jofra Archer, Liam Livingstone and Ben Stokes all in their ranks and they can be backed at 9/1 to win the competition but those liking the price needs to be aware that Buttler and Stokes will definitely exit on May 1 while Archer could leave them too. To be fair to Rajasthan their overall squad looks much stronger this year but the balance of the side remains a real issue.
Kings XI Punjab are the outsiders of the bunch at 10/1 but if they click they could cause some problems for a lot of teams. My big problem with them is that they lack the required amount of Indian depth in their side but if Chris Gayle and David Miller continue their good form with the bat and Andrew Tye lives up to his reputation with the ball they might not need too much more to be competitive. They’re not my bet but I don’t make them also rans at the same time.
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Betting
The outright market is a tough one to bet on this year. You are certainly not going to get value with whoever you take with just 5.5pts separating the market heading into the campaign, so it is all about backing the team you think will win the tournament, or give you a strong run in it at the very least. The other reason why the tournament betting isn’t the best to get stuck into is the fact there is going to be a lot of upheaval around the time of the play-offs.
One side who should challenge and who might not be as affected as some are the Delhi Capitals and at 8/1 I think they are worth a pop this season. I’ve liked them for a couple of seasons in fairness and I’ll have a go with them here. They have raw power in their middle order and Shikhar Dhawan should make such a difference at the top of the order. Delhi have a number of bowling options which is never a bad thing. There should be plenty of juice in their 8/1 quotes.
Tips
Back Delhi Capitals to win IPL 2019 for a 2/10 stake at 9.00 with Betway
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