Six months after it was originally scheduled, the 2020 season of the Indian Premier League gets underway on Saturday as the eight franchises get together again to compete in a full campaign, albeit out in the UAE rather than in India.
Bubbles have been set up and a window has been found for the tournament so the Mumbai Indians will have the chance to defend the title they won last year. With the competition being played on neutral venues though this has the feeling of the most open IPL season yet.
Recent Winners
2019 – Mumbai Indians
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
The Format
The venues might have changed for this season but the competition structure hasn’t. That means we are left 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 Mumbai Indians are the 4/1 favourites to make a successful defence of their title. If they are going to do that they will need their all-rounders to go very well. Mumbai usually utilise a number of them which tends to be fine at the Wankhede where the wickets are good for batting but the longer this tournament goes on that won’t be the case. They are not blessed in the spin department which might be a concern but the quality of Jasprit Bumrah could make up for that. They feel a little short at 4/1 though.
The Sunrisers Hyderabad are the second favourites at 11/2. They are another side who look light of out and out batting although they do have players like Mohammad Nabi who can extend their hitting power. What they lack in batting depth outside their top three they more than make up for with the quality of their bowling attack. Trevor Bayliss is an excellent coach too who knows this part of the world very well so he is another weapon in their arsenal so this could be a decent season for the Sunrisers.
Contenders
The Chennai Super Kings were beaten in the final of this competition last year but they are 6/1 to go one better this time around. The general consensus is that they won’t go as well this term because they have lost home advantage. To an extent there is some truth in that but the longer this tournament goes on the pitches will deteriorate so when it matters they are likely to be better suited. Theirs is an aging squad which in a normal IPL season would be a concern but it might actually be an advantage here. File them in the dark horses category.
Royal Challengers Bangalore are 7/1 to win the title. There will be a team who are best suited to playing away from India. We probably won’t know who it is until we are deep into the season but it wouldn’t be a surprise if it is Virat Kohli’s men because their recent record in this tournament is terrible. It is clear that their home ground is no advantage for them so being away from there is a positive and any team with Aaron Finch, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers as its top three has to be dangerous. There is enough to like at the price.
The Delhi Capitals are a side who are improving bit by bit and if that improvement continues into this season then they should be strong challengers. The big things about the Capitals are they have plenty of quality Indian batsmen which is often important in this tournament. It gives them so many more options to have their overseas players where they need it. Ajinkya Rahane only strengthens their Indian contingent with the bat. Don’t rule out the Capitals.
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Outsiders
The Kolkata Knight Riders often set themselves up to be a powerful side so it wouldn’t be the biggest surprise in the world if they fly out of the traps in this tournament, but the longer it goes on you could see their batting struggling a little bit which would be a concern. One thing which will have them competitive throughout the whole season is their spin attack and if Kuldeep Yadav and Sunil Narine stay fit they have a chance. I wouldn’t have them in with the likely winners but they merit respect at 7/1.
Kings XI Punjab have decided to change captains with KL Rahul taking the reins and it will be interesting to see how he gets on. There is a lack of Indian seamers which certainly isn’t ideal but one area where they are well packed is in the lower order firepower. The likes of Glenn Maxwell and Nicholas Pooran arrive in excellent nick and that could be key. If someone like Chris Gayle or Mujeeb Ur Rahman has a tournament to remember the Kings XI would have a chance but they are outsiders for a reason.
The biggest price to win the tournament are the Rajasthan Royals at 10/1. When you look down the list of their squad you would have that as a surprise because they have some brilliant players in their squad. The problem is much of them are overseas players and they are restricted to four of them. We saw last year that they couldn’t work out how to get their best players into a balanced XI and if they haven’t learned their lessons from that this could be a long season for them. If they have they are automatic title contenders with the quality in their ranks.
Betting
I think we’re looking for a team that with the bat in hand is quick to assess conditions and modify plans as they go along and who with the ball can get a decent amount of overs of spin in and have seam bowlers who are either loaded with extreme pace or who have good change of paces and can bowl wicket to wicket. That whittles the field down quite quickly and there is one team which stands out to me.
That team is the Chennai Super Kings. I’m not usually one for backing old teams in these franchise events but I actually think their experience is a positive this season. In Shane Watson, MS Dhoni, Dwayne Bravo, Faf du Plessis and one or two others they have a wealth of experience of how to judge games and their bowling attack covers all bases. The longer this tournament goes on the more the wickets are going to play right into their hands and I think the Super Kings are the best bet this season.
Tips
Back Chennai Super Kings to win IPL 2020 for a 2/10 stake at 7.00 with Betfair
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