One day to go for IPL 2017! Here is the second part of our IPL 2017 preview covering KKR, GL, KXIP and DD.
Read Part 1 here.
Kolkata Knight Riders
Skipper: Gautam Gambhir
2016 Finish: #4 of 8, losing the eliminator to eventual champions
Best Finish Ever: 2012 and 2014 Winners
First Match: Gujarat Lions vs. KKR at Rajkot, Friday April 7th, 2017 at 8pm IST
Team Balance: Probably the best balanced side of all – batting, all-rounders, spinners, pacers, young, old!
Players to Watch:
- Robin Uthappa: No longer playing for India, Uthappa continues to shine in the IPL; 3390 runs with 17 half centuries since 2008
- Trent Boult: Stuck in a stacked SRH lineup last year, he barely played, but will be an excellent fast bowling replacement for Morne Morkel
- Chris Woakes: T20 Strike rate of 139 with the bat, 400+ first class wickets with the ball. KKR may have found the perfect replacement for Andre Russell.
Gujarat Lions
Skipper: Suresh Raina
2016 Finish: #3 of 8, after topping the table but losing both qualifiers
Best Finish Ever: 2016, their first and only season so far
First Match: Gujarat Lions vs. KKR at Rajkot, Friday April 7th, 2017 at 8pm IST
Team Balance: Batting heavy with 3 true all-rounders, but limited pure bowling quality
Players to Watch:
- Jason Roy: His first ever IPL, but Roy has a T20 strike rate of nearly 145.
- Dwayne Bravo: #3 on IPLs all-time highest wicket taker list with his focus on death overs
- Ravindra Jadeja: Man of the Series in tests against Australia, Sir is more than capable in the T20 format.
Kings XI Punjab
Skipper: Glenn Maxwell
2016 Finish: #8 of 8 for the second year in a row
Best Finish Ever: Finalists in 2014
First Match: KXIP vs. Rising Pune Supergiants at Indore, April 8, 2017 at 4pm IST
Team Balance: Very batting heavy; not a single overseas bowler in the entire squad
Players to Watch:
- Eoin Morgan: With 24 T20 half centuries, Morgan was this year’s biggest buy for KXIP
- Sandeep Sharma: Not a big name but has a knack to pick up both early and late wickets
- Wriddhiman Saha: Sometimes seen as a test specialist, Saha has 2484 T20 runs at a strike rate of over 130
Delhi Daredevils
Skipper: Zaheer Khan
2016 Finish: #6
Best Finish Ever: 2008, 2009 Semi Finalists
First Match: RCB vs. Delhi Daredevils at Bengaluru, April 8, 2017 at 8pm IST
Team Balance: Light on top order batting, strong lower order and quick bowling
Players to Watch:
- Kagiso Rabada: This young quick was Delhi’s key buy this year; though his T20 stats are limited, his Test and ODI bowling figures are tremendous
- Rishabh Pant: Young but with a bright future; he burst on the scene with a test match triple century and 48-ball hundred in the same season
- Amit Mishra: Amit Mishra’s leg spinners have picked up 124 victims in his IPL career, second only to Malinga. Can run through any line-up on his day.
2 comments on “IPL 2017 Preview: Part 2”
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Your previews should include an expected finish position this season category. I mean, obviously the Sunrisers are going to win again, but the remaining 7 teams need to be ranked on winning potential.
We were hoping not to alienate anyone by rating teams, but since you asked, here’s the projected 2017 finish:
1) Delhi Daredevils
2) Kolkata Knight Riders
3) Mumbai Indians
4) Gujarat Lions
5) Royal Challengers Bangalore
6) Rising Pune Supergiants
7) Kings XI Punjab
8) Sunrisers Hyderabad
* Disclaimer: All views in this comment are the opinion of one blogger, not the official stance of 1T1H, and comments are designed exclusively to harass the original poster above.