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| Image Credit: pixahive.com |
Hello friends,
We have come to the end of first two weeks of IPL season14. All the teams have played 5 matches each. Whereas teams like Chennai Super Kings & Royal Challengers Bangalore have found their rhythm at the beginning of the tournament, there is room for drastic improvement in case of teams like Punjab Kings, Rajasthan Royals or Sunrisers Hyderabad. Defending champions Mumbai Indians & two time champions Kolkata Knight Riders also have plenty to ponder at the beginning of the tournament as they are yet to come up with a complete performance. Second week of the most coveted T20 league saw plenty of close encounters, a super over finish, teams struggling to get used to slow & turning pitches and some dominating performances by top teams. The league is expected to go on amid teams getting hit by withdrawals of players due to the ongoing pandemic in the country & speculations whether it is fair to organize a cash rich league like IPL at the time when the countrymen are reeling under severity of second wave of Covid 19. Lot of credit to the players who are trying their best to perform & bring a smile on the faces of the people confined in their homes due to the effect of pandemic. Let's have a look on the top highlights of the week
- Dominance of MS Dhoni led Chennai Super Kings continues as they gave match winning performances against tough opponents like KKR & RCB
- Maiden IPL hundred by RCB's Devdutt Padikkal who was finding it difficult in the first few matches after recovering from Covid 19 infection
- Ravindra Jadeja's allround brilliance against RCB
- Up & down performance of Sunrisers Hyderabad continues
- Hunt for the right team balance & winning formula for teams like Punjab Kings & Rajasthan Royals continues
Let's now quickly have a look on top team performances of the week.
Chennai Super Kings
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| Image Credit:pixahive.com |
There were plenty of talks after they failed to qualify for the playoffs last season. But the Men in Yellow once again proved the age old saying in cricket right that Form is temporary, class is permanent. Led by captain cool the team has already started showing signs that this year they have all the bases covered to go all the way to win another title. Batting depth has increased with addition of Raina & Moeen Ali. Bowling unit too has come good with the likes of Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, Lungi Ngidi. Presence of match winning allrounders like Jadeja, Bravo, Moeen Ali & Sam Curran has taken the team performance to another level. Strong start provided by the opening combination of veteran du Plessis & young talent Gaikwad is an icing on the cake. Above all there is the calming influence of Dhoni. Haven't they already started creating a case study of their own of how to learn from past mistakes & convert failures into success? They have shown improvement in all the aspects that hindered their journey last year. Ensuring openers utilize the powerplay, middle order giving collective performance, finishers doing their job at the death & bowling unit performing their role effectively are the blueprint of their success formula this year. As always captain was not very keen on making a complete makeover of the team just after an unsuccessful season. Instead he trusted his soldiers & backed them to do the job for the team once again this year with course corrections. Once again MSD proved why he has been regarded so high as a leader. His ability to stay calm under unfavorable conditions & take right decisions is what sets him apart from the rest. His calmness during the onslaught by Andre Russell in the match against KKR or sound advice to Jadeja during the last over in the match against RCB which helped Jadeja to hit five sixes & change the fate of the match was much appreciated. CSK fans are definitely in for yet another exciting season led by their beloved Thala.
Royal Challengers Bangalore
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| Image Credit: Pixahive.com |
One of the most talked about team. At the beginning of every season they are in the limelight mainly due to their expensive player purchases or with the burning question of whether they will be able to win the elusive IPL trophy this year. Presence of big names like Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers increases the hope every year among the fans. But unfortunately they haven't been able to convert that promise into results all these years. This year is no exception for RCB. They are in the spotlight since beginning of the season with the high price purchases of Australian dasher Glenn Maxwell & newcomer New Zealander Kyle Jamieson. Both the acquisitions were in question as Maxwell's last IPL season was extremely disappointing whereas Jamieson is completely new to the cricketing arena. But captain & team management were extremely confident that both these guys will deliver. So far both the players have been able to justify the faith kept on them by their franchisee. Maxwell being given a chance as a pure top order batter has already delivered couple of match winning knocks whereas Jamieson has been decent with the ball even during the tough phases of the match. What a change of fortune for both Maxwell & RCB so far. Playing for the Punjab franchisee last year Maxwell was completely out of sorts with no clarity on his role in the team along with the increasing burden of high price tag. But this year with a new franchisee & even a higher price tag he has been able to justify his selection so far. Lot of credit to the RCB leadership group for how they have utilized his skills in the best possible way. Playing with lot of freedom he is already the top scorer for his team so far. A perfect example of how an individual's skills can be utilized for the maximum output. On the other hand young Jamieson will only get better from here after such a huge learning experience at the beginning of his career. This time around RCB looks a lot more formidable side with all the bases covered & each player performing with optimum capacity. Who knows this year might be the end of the long wait for their fans for that coveted trophy. Maxwell will definitely have to play a big role along with Kohli & ABD if they have to go all the way this time around.
More coming up in this space. Till then stay home, stay safe.
Click here for the Part-I of this series.
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