The Indian premier League returns for another season on Friday when IPL 2023 gets underway with 10 teams once again battling it out in the biggest and more lucrative T20 domestic competition across the globe.
The Gujarat Titans took the riches that come with winning this tournament a year ago when they landed the crown on their first season in the competition. They will be looking to fend off the other nine teams once again.
Recent Winners
2022 – Gujarat Titans
2021 – Chennai Super Kings
2020 – Mumbai Indians
2019 – Mumbai Indians
2018 – Chennai Super Kings
2017 – Mumbai Indians
2016 – Sunrisers Hyderabad
2015 – Mumbai Indians
2014 – Kolkata Knight Riders
2013 – Mumbai Indians
The Format
The actual format of the competition remains the same as last season. Each team plays 14 regular season matches with everyone playing each of the other teams once and then they play five other teams a second time with those fixtures being determined on the previous rankings in the competition. The format for the play-offs has changed too with only the top four making it through to the final stages. The top two get two bites of the cherry at making the final with the winner of the first against second meeting going straight through. Third face fourth in a straight knockout with the winner meeting the loser of the first game to determine the second team in the final. One slight tweak in terms of the rules is that apart from run outs the new batter must be on strike after a wicket.
Venues/Rules
For the first time since Covid became a thing the tournament will be played at the traditional home venues of the teams involved instead of a number of neutral venues which have been used since the pandemic. There are some new rules for this season though. If a team doesn’t bowl their overs in the allotted time they will only be allowed four fielders outside the circle but the two biggest changes are that the teams can now announce their playing XI after the toss and teams can use an ‘Impact Player’ which will be a direct substitute from a group of four named players who can replace a player in the starting XI and be able to bat and/or bowl.
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The Favourites
The Gujarat Titans won the tournament 12 months ago and they are the 11/2 favourites to defend their title successfully. Hardik Pandya was a machine for them in the tournament when they won it and he is there to lead the side again. There is an argument to be made that the Titans have strengthened having picked up Kane Williamson in the action to go alongside the likes of Rashid Khan, Matthew Wade, Odean Smith and David Miller who are all good overseas options. Throw in home players with the quality of Shubman Gill and Mohammad Shami and the Titans are primed to deliver a big title defence.
The team the Titans beat in the final in 2022, Rajasthan Royals, are the second favourites for the tournament this season. They will have to find someone to fill the void created by the injured Prasidh Krishna who took 19 wickets on the way to the final last term. Jos Buttler was the superstar we know him to be a year ago and he is around for another go while the spin twins of Yuzvendra Chahal and R Ashwin remain in the squad. If the likes of Devdutt Padikkal, Joe Root and Shimron Hetmyer bring the runs with them the 7/1 Royals should be there or thereabouts again.
The Contenders
The Mumbai Indians are always one of the teams where the attention is immediately drawn to given their historical record in this tournament. They also have two of the most marketable players in the competition in the form of Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav not to mention two brutal overseas hitters in the form of Tim David and Dewald Brevis. The latter pair mean that the Indians have been able to move on from Kieron Pollard. Defending their home ground will forever be an issue for Mumbai and the injury absence to Jasprit Bumrah isn’t going to help with that but the signing of Jofra Archer certainly will. Cameron Green and Tristan Stubbs are two other appealing players so the Indians look in great shape to get the title back.
Royal Challengers Bangalore perennially go into the Indian Premier League season with expectation of winning the competition on their shoulders but they regularly flatter to deceive in that regard. Bangalore finished fourth in the regular standings a year ago but couldn’t make it through to the final and certainly haven’t been helped by the injury to Will Jacks who was going to be a gun at the top of the order for them. With Glenn Maxwell also returning from injury and Josh Hazlewood expected to miss the start of the season Bangalore have a few issues to sort before they work out how they are going to go about defending the Chinnaswamy.
The Delhi Capitals are 15/2 shots to win the title this season. They missed out on the playoffs by one spot last term and have already had to rethink their strategy after the injury to Rishabh Pant has ruled him out of the competition. David Warner will lead the side, a team which certainly doesn’t lack for firepower with the likes of Rilee Rossouw, Mitchell Marsh and Rovman Powell joining the likes of Prithvi Shaw. The spin pair of Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav should go well while Anrich Nortje will have batters hopping all over the place. I just think an overseas captain is a negative because it restricts the options available to teams and that puts me off taking them.
Betting
There is no getting away from a couple of disappointing campaigns for the Mumbai Indians but I think now the competition is back in a proper schedule and everything that they are the team to beat this term. They have so much firepower in their ranks that when they come off they could put up some scary numbers which are out of reach for any team in the competition. Often when a team has so much batting firepower it comes at the expense of a bowling attack.
That isn’t really the case with the Indians though. Jofra Archer is as good a T20 bowler as there is in the game and if the likes of Jason Behrendorff ot Cameron Green have good campaigns and one or two of the Indian bowlers stand up to be counted then there is nothing stopping Mumbai from having one of those seasons where they take it by storm. While Mumbai are going to have some young bowlers in their ranks, if one of them starts going around the park they can soon use the Impact Player card. I expect a big season from the Indians.
Tips
Back Mumbai Indians to win IPL 2023 (e/w) for a 1.5/10 stake at 8.00 with Bet365 (1/2 1-2)
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