Kolkata Knight Riders
Who will win the IPL 2021? The favorites, underdogs, and outsiders
The IPL of the 2021 season kicked off on April 9th. The final match of the IPL 2021 will be played on May 30 at the Motera Stadium in Ahmedabad after a month and a half of the competition. Mumbai Indians have won the last two editions of the IPL and they are again a strong contender for the title this year. However, other teams are determined to dethrone Mumbai and win the IPL but which team has more chance to win the trophy? In this article, we discussed who will win the IPL 2021? The favorites, underdogs, and outsiders.
Who are the favorites to win the IPL 2021?
Mumbai Indians
Mumbai Indians are now the most confident team in the league after winning the previous two IPL tournaments.So they were not seen to be very active in this year’s IPL auction. Mumbai have complete trust in their IPL-winning squad in the search for a hat-trick title. There are a handful of match-winning players in the squad who can decide the outcome of a match on their own.
Top five players of Mumbai Indians:
Rohit Sharma (captain, batsman), Kieron Pollard (all-rounder), Hardik Pandya (all-rounder), Trent Bolt (pacer), Jasprit Bumrah (pacer)
Kolkata Knight Riders
Kolkata Knight Riders have not won an IPL tournament since 2014. So, Kolkata have put together a very strong team for the 2021 season in order to reclaim the title.After a three-year absence, Bangladesh's Shakib Al Hasan is back in the Kolkata squad this season. The squad also has a number of spinners. As a result, Kolkata Knight Riders are the strongest spin-reliant team in this year's IPL. Ian Morgan-led Kolkata Knight Riders have a genuine chance to win the IPL 2021 if they can stay consistent in the final part of the season.
Top five players of Kolkata Knight Riders:
Ian Morgan (captain, batsman), Andre Russell (all-rounder), Shakib Al Hasan (all-rounder), Sunil Narine (all-rounder), Pat Cummins (pacer)
Read: BAN vs SL Cricket Test series 2021: Expected personal milestones to achieve
Royal Challengers Bangalore
Every year, Virat Kohli's Royal Challengers Bangalore enter the IPL as a tournament favorite. However, they are yet to win an IPL tournament. As always, Bangalore have put together a formidable squad for the 14th edition of the IPL. Australia's Glenn Maxwell has been added to their squad for the 2021 IPL campaign. In addition, the squad contains a number of star cricketers. Let's see if team Bangalore can change its IPL fortune this time!
Top five players of Royal Challengers Bangalore:
ViratKohli (captain, batsman), Glenn Maxwell (all-rounder), AB de Villiers (batsman), Kyle Jamieson (pacer), YuzvendraChahal (spinner)
Read: Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka 2021: Analysis of Bangladesh’s Test Squad for Sri Lanka Series
Sunrisers Hyderabad
Sunrisers Hyderabad haven't won the Indian Premier League (IPL) since 2016. Sunrisers Hyderabad have been led by Australian David Warner for the past few years and they have consistently made it to the knockout stages of the tournament. Sunrisers have some great t20 format players. As a result, they are one of the favorites of this year's tournament like every time.
Top five players of Royal Challengers Hyderabad:
David Warner (captain, batsman), Rashid Khan (spinner), Bhuvneshwar Kumar (pacer), Jonny Bairstow (wicket-keeper), Kane Williamson (batsman)
Who are the underdogs to win the IPL 2021?
Chennai Super Kings
Chennai Super Kings have always been considered a favorite, but they are labeled underdogs this season. Dhoni's team has a number of world-class cricketers, but most of them are over 30 years old. With such a team, the odds of winning the IPL are slightly lower than with other teams. So it would not be right to expect much from team Chennai this time.
Top five players of Chennai Super Kings:
MS Dhoni (captain, wicket-keeper), Faf du Plessis (batsman), Suresh Raina (batsman), Moeen Ali (all-rounder), Sam Curran (all-rounder)
Read: Bangladesh vs Sri Lanka 2021: Five Things Bangladesh Cricket Team Must Do To win the Test Series in Sri Lanka
Delhi Capitals
Many people are betting on Delhi Capitals to win the 14th edition of the IPL since they were runner-up in the previous edition. While Delhi have some talented players, their lack of experience may lead them to fall behind other teams. Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant will take over as captain in place of the injured ShreyasIyer. It will be interesting to see how far Delhi will go under his leadership.
Top five players of Delhi Capitals:
Rishabh Pant (captain, wicket-keeper), ShikharDhawan (batsman), Marcus Stoinis (all-rounder), Tom Curran (all-rounder), Steve Smith (batsman)
Who are the outsiders to win the IPL 2021?
Rajasthan Royals
Rajasthan Royals have a number of outstanding T20 cricketers, among them is South African all-rounder Chris Morris. He was the most expensive player in the 2021 IPL auction. Rajasthan paid $ 2.3 million for Morris at auction. Rajasthan is predicted to do well in this year's IPL under the leadership of CaptainSanju Samson. However, they are currently regarded as one of the outsiders to win the trophy.
Top five players of Rajasthan Royals:
Sanju Samson (captain, batsman), Chris Morris (all-rounder), Jos Buttler (wicket-keeper), Ben Stokes (all-rounder), Mustafizur Rahman (pacer)
Read: T20 World Cup 2021: Five Things the Bangladesh Team Needs To Address Before the World T20 2021
Punjab Kings
PreityZinta's team will compete in the IPL 14 under the new name Punjab Kings this year. Although the squad has some talented players, it is not particularly strong in comparison to other teams. As a result, dreaming of winning the championship right now would be wrong. Punjab will have to maintain continuity at the league level in order to secure a spot in the top four of the points table.
Top five players of Punjab Kings:
KL Rahul (captain, wicket-keeper), Riley Meredith (pacer), Jhye Richardson (all-rounder), Chris Gayle (batsman), Mohammad Shami (pacer)
Verdict
We have analyzed the strengths of the teams to identify who will win the IPL 2021? And also to find out the favorites, underdogs, and outsiders of the tournament. After assessing each team's strengths, it is apparent that the Mumbai Indians are once again the hot favorite. In addition, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata Knight Riders, and Sunrisers Hyderabad all have an equal chance of winning the IPL in 2021. However, teams in good form at the end of the tournament would have a great chance of winning the trophy. Overall, we expect the tournament's best team will win the trophy.
Read: How to Become a Cricketer in Bangladesh: An Overall Guideline
Shakib's KKR fail to close the deal against Mumbai
Bangladesh allrounder Shakib Al Hasan bowled well for Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday when they took on Mumbai Indians in their second game of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021. KKR, however, lost the game due to careless batting during the last five overs of the game- and there Shakib must share in the blame. Some might say he even started it.
KKR won the toss and opted to bowl first against Mumbai who lost the first game of the season to Royal Challengers Bengaluru. KKR, on the other hand, came to his game with a win in their first game to Sunrisers Hyderabad.
Andre Russell bagged five wickets for KKR conceding only 15 runs in two overs, and thus, he was the best bowler of his team while Shakib bagged one wicket conceding only 23 runs in four overs. Shakib’s economy was 5.75, the lowest for KKR’s bowlers who have bowled all four overs in this game.
For Mumbai, Suryakumar Yadav hit 56 off 36 before Shakib sent him back while Rohit Sharma posted 43 off 32 balls. Mumbai scored 152 for all wickets in 20 overs.
Also read: Kolkata kicks off IPL with 10-run win despite Shakib’s lean show
In reply, Nitish Rana and Shubham Gill posted 72 runs in the first wicket stand, and it looked like KKR will have an easy win. But the failure of the other batsmen made it tough for them.
Rahul Chahar bagged the first four wickets of Kolkata conceding 27 runs in four overs. Shakib got a promotion in the batting order, coming to bat at number five. But the left-hander failed to exploit the chance as he fell for 9 off 9 deliveries.
In the last five overs, KKR needed 30 runs with six wickets, including Shakib, Russell and Dinesh Karthik, in hand, but they failed to do it.
They lost Shakib during the 16th over while in the last over when KKR needed to score 15 to seal the game, Trent Boult removed Andre Russell, 9 off 15 balls, and Pat Cummins off two consecutive deliveries. Karthik remained unbeaten at 8 off 11 balls.
And eventually, KKR tumbled for 142 for seven in 20 overs and lost the game by 10 runs.
Kolkata kicks off IPL with 10-run win despite Shakib’s lean show
Shakib Al Hasan made a comeback to the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Sunday with the first match of Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the season against Sunresiers Hyderabad. KKR won the game by 10 runs, but Shakib’s performance was lean in the field.
The left-handed allrounder batted for five balls to score only three runs. But he started well with the ball taking a wicket off the first ball in the season removing Wriddhiman Saha. Shakib, however, failed to continue on the good run as he ended up his bowling quota conceding 34 runs in four overs.
Shakib missed the last season of IPL due to the two-year-long ban, with one year suspended, which was imposed on him by the ICC for failing to corrupt approaches made to him.
Also read: Mustafiz's Rajasthan vs Shakib's Kolkata: Which team has the best chance to win the IPL 2021?
On Sunday’s game, SRH won the toss and sent KKR to bat first. Nitish Rana and Shubman Gill added 53 runs before Gill was removed by Rashid Khan at 15 off the last ball of the seventh over.
In the second wicket stand, Rana and Rahul Tripathi added 93 runs on the board. The first three youngers laid a good foundation for KKR.
Riding on Rana’s 80, Tripathi’s 53 and Dinesh Karthik’s 9-ball 22, KKR posted a challenging total of 187 for six in 20 overs.
Also read: Shakib's 34th Birthday: 34 achievements to celebrate the no.1 all-rounder
For SRH, two Afghan spinners— Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi— bagged two wickets each while Bhuvneshwar Kumar and T Natarajan took one wicket each.
In reply, Manish Pandey hi an unbeaten 61 off 44 balls with two fours and three sixes while Jonny Bairstow also smashed a fifty, 55, off 40 deliveries, but SRH failed to sail through.
They needed to score 22 runs in the last over bowled by Andre Russell. Pandey and Abdul Salam only managed 11 runs despite a last-ball six by Pandey.
Also read: Shakib reaches Kolkata to play IPL
For KKR, pace-bowler Prasidh Krishna took two wickets conceding 35 runs while Shakib, Russell and Pat Cummins took one wicket each.
IPL 2021: Shakib all set to face Mumbai Indians
Bangladesh and Kolkata Knight Riders all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan is all ready to face Mumbai Indians in the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL), which is slated to start on April 9.
Shakib has already joined the Kolkata team who are now having a practice camp in Mumbai. Before joining the camp, Shakib had a seven-day quarantine.
Also read: IPL 2021: Shakib back in Kolkata Knight Riders
Kolkata's IPL will begin with their encounter against Sunrisers Hyderabad on April 11 in Chennai. They will face Mumbai Indians in their next game on April 13 at the same venue.
While talking to ESPNcricinfo recently, Shakib said he was waiting to face Mumbai in this IPL. "The team I am most looking forward to facing in this IPL is Mumbai.
"I would also love to face English pacer Jofra Archer who was slated to play for Rajasthan Royals," Shakib said. Jofra, however, is uncertain for this IPL, and the all-rounder said in the absence of Jofra, he would love to face Patt Cummins in the nets who is also playing for Kolkata.
This IPL is like a homecoming for Shakib as he returned to Kolkata after two years. In the last season, Shakib was out of cricketing activities due to a ban imposed on him by the International Cricket Council for failing to report corrupt approaches. Before that, the all-rounder played for Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2019.
Shakib was a part of Kolkata when they won two IPL titles. He said his best memory in IPL came in 2014 when he performed well with the bat and ball and Kolkata won the title. The Bangladesh all-rounder scored 227 runs and bagged 11 wickets in that season of IPL.
Also read:Mustafiz's Rajasthan vs Shakib's Kolkata: Which team has the ..
The all-rounder believes that the team's strongest side in this IPL is their bowling line-up. "I think we've covered all the area well."
"Namely, I believe the bowling department is the strongest part of our team. This bowling attack can win the IPL for Kolkata."
However, Shakib had some tough time off the field recently due to choosing IPL over Bangladesh's tour to Sri Lanka for a two-match series.
He applied to the Bangladesh Cricket Board to allow him to play IPL and skip the tour. The board accepted his request.
However, the board also said Shakib was reluctant to play Tests. But he did not say so.
Mustafiz's Rajasthan vs Shakib's Kolkata: Which team has the best chance to win the IPL 2021?
The 14th edition of the Indian Premier League will begin on Friday (April 9) and the championship match of this tournament will be held on May 30 at Ahmedabad's Motera Stadium. This year's tournament will feature a total of 8 teams and will be held in six different venues. Last season, no Bangladeshi cricketer participated in the IPL, but this year's edition will feature Shakib Al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman. Shakib will represent Kolkata Knight Riders, while Mustafizur will play for Rajasthan Royals for the first time. Let's see which team has the best chance to win the IPL 2021?
Rajasthan vs Kolkata: Who has the upper hand in terms of team strength?
It's important to have an understanding of the squad when assessing title contenders. Let's take a look at both squads and examine their overall strength.
Batting
Rajasthan Royals
David Miller, Liam Livingstone, and Jos Butler are the three destructive overseas batsmen for Rajasthan Royals. The only two prominent Indian batsmen in Rajasthan's squad are Sanju Samson and Yashasvi Jaiswal. They'll have to play with more responsibility since there aren't many alternatives in the Rajasthan squad. On the other side, Kolkata have a slight advantage in terms of batting ability.
Also read; Mustafizur gets BCB nod to play in IPL
Kolkata Knight Riders
In the batting department, Kolkata have England captain Eoin Morgan and New Zealand wicket-keeper Tim Seifert in the foreign quota. These two are very effective batsmen in limited-overs cricket. Besides, Morgan is also one of the best captains in the world right now. Among the Indians, Kolkata have well-known batsmen like Rahul Tripathi, Karan Nair, Nitish Rana, Shubman Gill, and veteran Dinesh Karthik. Overall, the Kolkata squad has some reliable top and middle-order batsmen.
Read How to Become a Cricketer in Bangladesh: An Overall Guideline.
Which team is stronger in batting?
Kolkata Knight Riders
Bowling
Rajasthan Royals
Rajasthan Royals are considered to have the worst spin attack in this year's IPL as Mayank Markande and K. C. Cariappa are the only two young spinners for the Royals. They do, however, have a potent pace attack led by Bangladeshi left-arm medium-fast bowler Mustafizur Rahman, Andrew Tye of Australia, Jofra Archer of England, and local lad Jaydev Unadkat. If Cutter Master Mustafiz gets into his rhythm in the tournament, he could be a trump card for Rajasthan. Bangladesh cricket fans are eagerly waiting to see Mustafiz's bowling prowess in the IPL.
Read Bangladesh's five most memorable overseas ODI wins
Kolkata Knight Riders
Kolkata have formed their pace attack with the inclusion of Australia's Pat Cummins, New Zealand's Lockie Ferguson, and India's Kamlesh Nagarkoti. Considering India's spin-friendly pitches, Kolkata have included four world-class spinners. They are Sunil Narayan, Varun Chakraborty, Kuldeep Yadav, and veteran Harbhajan Singh. Kolkata have arguably the best spin attack in the tournament.
Read Mashrafe Mortaza drops a bombshell over his alleged T20 retirement in 2017
Which team is stronger in bowling?
Kolkata Knight Riders
All-Rounder
Rajasthan Royals
Rajasthan Royals includes England's best player Ben Stokes. This marquee all-rounder can become a nightmare to opposition teams. Rajasthan Royals have also included solid performers like Chris Morris, Rahul Tewatia, and Shivam Dube in the squad. Chris Morris is currently one of the best all-rounders in the T20 format. Morris is an all-rounder on par with England's Ben Stokes. Rajasthan will undoubtedly need these two players to perform consistently if they are to progress to the IPL 2021 playoffs.
Read Memorable Match Winning Knocks in Tests
Kolkata Knight Riders
In the all-rounder category, Kolkata Knight Riders have included India's Shivam Mavi, Australia's Ben Cutting, Windies Power Hitter Andre Russell, and world no.1 Shakib Al Hasan. Among them, Andre Russell was Kolkata's best player in the last three seasons. So the Knight Riders will have a lot of expectations from him. On the other hand, Shakib will try to achieve success and showcase his true potential in this year's IPL. Shakib has an amazing ability to shine when the team needs him the most. Kolkata haven't won an IPL trophy after 2014, therefore Shakib and Russell will have to take on a lot more responsibility to reclaim the title for the knight riders.
Which team is stronger in the all-rounder category?
Both teams are equally strong
Read Shakib's 34th Birthday: 34 achievements to celebrate the no.1 all-rounder
Bottom Line
In terms of team strength, the Kolkata Knight Riders are slightly ahead of the Rajasthan Royals. As a result, Shakib Al Hasan's Kolkata are one of the hot favorites to win the 14th edition of the IPL. According to statistics, teams' probabilities of reaching the IPL play-off round increase if they can retain consistency in the middle of the tournament. In that case, Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals would want to finish the league stage in top form. So, by the middle of the tournament, it will be clear which team has the best chance to win the IPL 2021? However, Bangladesh cricket supporters will cheer for both teams.
Read How Can Bangladesh directly qualify for the world cup 2023?
Shakib to skip Sri Lanka Tests to play in IPL
Bangladesh all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has decided to skip the Test series against Sri Lanka to take part in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
IPL 2021: Shakib back in KKR
Ace all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan has been roped in by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), his old team, for the upcoming season of Indian Premier League (IPL).