3 minute read
The 16th season of the Indian Premier League gets underway this week – the world's most prestigious and lucrative T20 franchise tournament.
The 2022 winners Gujarat Titans are the 11/2 favourites to win a second successive IPL title, and it's hard to look past them with the firepower they have in their ranks.
Formed in 2021 as part of the IPL expansion, Gujarat have acquired a number of the best talents in world cricket including Kane Williamson, David Miller, Shubman Gill, Rashid Khan, Hardik Pandya, Mohammed Shami and Alzarri Joseph – winning the title in their debut season.
A likely challenger will come in the form of the Rajasthan Royals (6/1) , who were the beaten finalists a year ago. The team hosted the competition's MVP Jos Buttler (863 runs), and tournament's leading wicket-taker Yuzvendra Chahal (27). Both return in 2023, and they are joined by the likes of Sanju Sampson, Rassie van der Dussen, Ravichandran Ashwin and Trent Boult.
The tournament's most successful franchise, the Mumbai Indians, are also priced at 6/1. They finished 10th in 2022 but have plenty of talent stockpiled for a title jilt. Suryakumar Yadav is the #1 batter in the format, Rohit Sharma is an experienced opener, Tim David is a power-hitter and they have bowling firepower in the form of Jasprit Bumrah, Jofra Archer, Jhye Richardson and Duan Jansen.
Any team with a batting line-up including Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis, Finn Allen and Glenn Maxwell has the talent to contend for an IPL title, even before you factor in the likes of Josh Hazlewood, Mohammed Siraj and Reece Topley with the ball.Three-time runner-ups, RCB are yet to lift the coveted crown, so could they do it this year at 13/2?
Delhi Capitals are another franchise looking for their maiden IPL title, also priced at 13/2. Like most teams, the talent is there, namely David Warner, Rilee Rossouw, Phil Salt, Mitch Marsh, Axar Patel, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Kuldeep Yadav and Ishant Sharma.
Another franchise founded in 2021, Lucknow Super Giants are 8/1 in the market. They finished third in their debut season, defeated in the Eliminator by Rajasthan. Key names in their ranks include KL Rahul, Quinton de Kock, Nicholas Pooran, Marcus Stoinis, Deepak Hooda, Mark Wood, Naveen-ul-Haq and Avesh Khan.
Four-time IPL winners Chennai Super Kings are priced at 17/2, but they have acquired the global superstar that is Ben Stokes for 2023. MS Dhoni, Ajinka Rahana, Ravindra Jadeja and Deepak Chahar provide a strong Indian core to the side with overseas talents such as Devon Conway, Moeen Ali and Maheesh Theekshana adding to the squad's strength.
Despite being priced at 10/1, Sunrisers Hyderabad, the 2016 winners, have the talent to compete. Englishman Harry Brook has been phenomenal over the last 12 months, while Adil Rashid is one of T20's premier spinners. Aiden Markram, Glenn Phillips, Washington Sundar, Marco Jansen and Akeal Hosein should contribute to – a lot will depend on their overseas talent in 2023.
Punjab Kings may an 11/1 outsider for the title, but they will earn some backers in the market due to the talent on the roster. Shikhar Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Sam Curran, Jonny Bairstow, Kagiso Rabada and Arshdeep Singh are all world class T20 players capable of match-winning contributions.
