The 2019 IPL is beginning to take shape as the teams find their feet in cricket’s most popular domestic Twenty20 competition.
We have a fuller picture of what each team still needs to do to get themselves into contention for a spot in the play-offs, even if that is some way away.
The Chennai Super Kings are in action twice this week, having made the strongest start to the campaign to establish themselves as early favourites.
Monday 8 April
IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali (16:30)
Kings XI Punjab 21/20
Tie 35/1
Sunrisers Hyderabad 82/100
The season really could still go either way for both of these teams. Both the Kings XI and the Sunrisers have shown flashes of brilliance but have suffered from inconsistency, particularly in the top order.
The Kings XI and Sunrisers lost fixtures over the weekend which could have established them as genuine contenders for the IPL title, but neither side is really out of it.
The men from Punjab seem to have all the ingredients for success with a well-balanced top five and excellent bowling attack – and they need not fear any team in this competition.
Their bowlers will face a tremendous test as they meet the Sunrisers’ red-hot opening pair of Jonny Bairstow and David Warner. The duo are a treat to behold in full flight and a great advertisement for the IPL.
Having each won three of their five matches to date the sides come into the contest roughly even, though the Sunrisers are higher up the table by virtue of a superior net run-rate.
Verdict: Sunrisers to power home on the road.
Tuesday 9 April
MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai (16:30)
Chennai Super Kings
Die
Kolkata Knight Riders
The defending champions Super Kings are playing like champions elect so far in the 2019 IPL and look like a team who know what to do when the chips are down.
CSK have been able to win most of their tough fixtures through their great balance of talent, grit and all-star line-up.
The Kolkata Knight Riders pose an interesting threat to the dominance of CSK, though, and they have also made a great start to the competition.
CSK are comfortable chasing or setting a target at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, which has proven to have a surface that can take a fair amount of turn but still offer something for the enterprising batsman.
Proteas stars Imran Tahir and Faf du Plessis form part of the strong CSK core that have returned to defend their 2018 title.
The Knight Riders have a big lower-order insurance policy in Andre Russell, who is in brutal form and rendering virtually every target chaseable for the Kolkata team.
Verdict: CSK at home is a tough ask even for a form team.
Wednesday 10 April
Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai (16:30)
Mumbai Indians
Tie
Kings XI Punjab
The Kings XI will either get a massive boost ahead of this clash from their match against the Sunrisers or they could find themselves playing catch-up on the teams in play-offs contention.
The Mumbai Indians have started slowly but have started to come to the boil as they find their feet in the competition. They have a large and expectant fanbase putting pressure on skipper Rohit Sharma to deliver nothing short of the IPL trophy.
The Indians have also displayed the winning grit so prevalent at the Super Kings but have yet to find top gear with bat in hand.
The opening partnership between Rohit and Quinton de Kock has promised much but so far delivered very little for Mumbai.
For the Kings XI much of their success has been tethered to the strong displays of Lokesh Rahul, who seems to be the glue that holds their top order together.
The Wankhede can be a surface that is tough to assess but generally, anything above 160 is defendable.
Verdict: Mumbai to defend their patch.
Thursday 11 April
Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur (16:30)
Rajasthan Royals
Tie
Chennai Super Kings
The Royals need to get their campaign back on track and what better way to do that than to knock off the form team of IPL 2019.
It took the Royals four matches to register a win in the 2019 IPL but they have an impressive squad at their disposal, including English guns Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes and former Aussie Skipper Steve Smith.
CSK are well versed in dealing with the pressure of the favourites tag but the Royals might be able to out them under pressure in a game the Chennai franchise will feel they should win.
The sheer number of players with x-factor in the IPL makes every game hard to predict but the Royals will need to play far better cricket if they want to get close to CSK.
Jaipur has proven to be decent for batting without being an absolute road which could further play into the hands of the Super Kings.
Verdict: Super Kings over the Royals.
Witten by @JonhenryWilson
