Another two months of world class T20 cricket is about to begin as the latest season of the Indian Premier League kicks off on Friday when IPL 2024 starts with the 10 franchises all dreaming of being the ones to win the tournament.
Chennai Super Kings did that for the fifth time last term and they are back in the mix looking to get their hands back on the trophy. The other nine sides have all been to the auction and strengthened in their bid to win the title themselves.
Recent Winners
2023 – Chennai Super Kings
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
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 not changed though so only the top four make 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.
Venues/Rules
The tournament will begin at the traditional home venues of the franchises but only the first 21 fixtures have been declared as the Indian elections will determine where the remainder of the season is played. There is a new rule for this season though. Bowlers are now allowed to bowl two bouncers in an over. Rules such as the ‘Impact Player’ and the ability to review wides and no-balls are still in place in an otherwise unchanged set of rules.
The Favourites
The two most successful franchises in the history of the competition form the joint favourite tag for the 2024 season. The first of those is the defending champions Chennai Super Kings. They have won this title five times and will be expected to challenge this term but they have made a late change to their captaincy with the relatively inexperienced Ruturaj Gaikwad replacing MS Dhoni which is a strange one so close to the new season beginning. The other issue they have is they are going to miss Devon Conway at the top of the order and Matheesha Pathirana for the beginning of the event due to injury. They have recruited Rachin Ravindra who looked good in the World Cup for New Zealand and should really suit Chennai conditions. He could open and replace Conway as a like-for-like replacement but they need to find wickets in the absence of Pathirana if they are going to retain their title.
The other most successful franchise in this competition is the Mumbai Indians. They were only able to finish third last season and will be under pressure to get their hands on the trophy for the first time since 2020. They are also 9/2 on the best prices and the big news for them is they have brought Hardik Pandya back to the franchise and installed him as the captain. That will free up Rohit Sharma to concentrate on batting and with he, Ishan Kishan, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Pandya and Tim David, the Indians aren’t going to lack for runs. Jasprit Bumrah is expected to play a significant role this season too. If they can find a spinner to do the job then they will take a lot of beating.
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The Contenders
The Rajasthan Royals are 7/1 on the best prices and you wonder if they are equipped for success now. They have been hit a little in the lead up to the event with the withdrawal of Adam Zampa for personal reasons. He takes a chunk out of their spin attack, which is so crucial in this part of the world. They do still have R Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal although both are aging a touch now. Where there is a lot to like about this Rajasthan side is the depth they have to the batting. Jos Buttler is one of the best white ball batters in the world, Yashasvi Jaiswal is arguably the new superstar of Indian cricket and the likes of Shimron Hetmyer, Rovman Powell and Sanju Samson all have banks of good IPL work behind them. There is a lot to like about Rajasthan for sure.
The Royal Challengers Bangalore have still to get their hands on this trophy and they are 8/1 with the majority of books to get their hands on it this time around. Their big problem last season was that they only had three batters who scored more than 140 runs in the 14 matches they played. They have worked hard to get Will Jacks and Cameron Green into their squad but the former would be better at opening which would need Virat Kohli to go to three which might unbalance everything. The other issue Bangalore always have is their home ground is near on impossible to defend and their bowlers can go the distance. Lockie Ferguson might help with that but I’m never a fan of overseas captained sides and that doesn’t change with this lot.
The Gujarat Titans are the only other team who are single figures to win the title. They have gone champions and then beaten finalists in the two seasons they have been in the competition so 9/1 on them would certainly appeal to many. They have changed captain having lost Hardik Pandya and while Shubman Gill is a decent enough leader of the side it is the runs and wickets that will need to be replaced. The other thing that will need to be replaced are the wickets of Mohammad Shami. He was the leading wicket taker last season and he has been ruled out with injury. Sandeep Warrier is his replacement but is a real downgrade. When you put that into the mix the 9/1 price might not be the value it looks.
Outright Betting
I think this is a wide open IPL season and that could mean that the best value in it lies in the outsiders. From the favourites, I do think Mumbai Indians will be hard to beat and I would have liked the Rajasthan Royals if their home and away games were more spread out than they will be because of the Indian elections. That means they will do some serious travelling in the second half of the season which isn’t ideal. The other side I would have quite liked was the Sunrisers Hyderabad but I just think you weaken your chances with an overseas captain as it really doesn’t allow enough flexibility.
When you look at the potential starting XI for the Punjab Kings I’m surprised they are 22/1 to win the competition this season. Admittedly they have flattered to deceive too much in the past but a top four which could consist of Shikhar Dhawan, Prabhsimran Singh, Jonny Bairstow and Liam Livingstone and a seam attack of Sam Curran, Harshal Patel, Kagiso Rabada and Arshdeep Singh should really be contending strongly in this tournament. They have a spinner and a couple of livewire Indian middle order players and decent overseas backups with the likes of Matthew Short, Rilee Rossouw, Sikandar Raza and Nathan Ellis all decent options. Whatever they deliver the 22/1 on the Punjab Kings has to be overpriced based on their personnel.
Tips
Back Punjab Kings to win IPL 2024 (e/w) for a 1/10 stake at 23.00 with Betfair (1/2 1-2)
