IPL 2021: These Two Teams Can Make It to the Finals This Year
While all the teams will be hoping to create an early impact by grabbing maximum wins to reach the playoffs, some teams stand with an upper hand due to their past records, their players as well as their performance in the first leg of the IPL 2021.
The second leg of IPL 2021 is just a few weeks away from getting a power start and fans cannot help but anticipate about the favourite teams that could actually make it to the finals this year. While all the teams will be hoping to create an early impact by grabbing maximum wins to reach the playoffs, some teams stand with an upper hand due to their past records, their players as well as their performance in the first leg of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 which makes them stand apart from the other teams. Let's have a look at the two favourite IPL teams that are most likely to reach the finals of the 14th edition of the T20 Tournament. IPL 2021 New Schedule For Free PDF Download Online: Time Table With Date & Match Time In IST, Venue Details, Fixtures of Rescheduled Indian Premier League 14 in UAE.
1. Mumbai Indians
The team stands as the top-most contender of the IPL 2021 title as they'll be aiming to grab the trophy for the sixth time along with a hat-trick after their consecutive victory in 2019 and 2020. Along with having the top bowlers on board like Trent Boult and Jasprit Bumrah, MI is known to have one of the best batting line-ups in the tournament including Quintin de Kock and Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Kieron Pollard and Hardik Pandya. IPL 2021 Points Table: Here’s How Teams Stand Ahead of the UAE Leg.
The biggest advantage that the team holds is that they have a batsman for every type of bowling attack and they exhibit the strength to be destructive in the death overs. Be it Ishan Kishan, who had a mind-blowing season last year after he smashed a total of 516 runs in 13 innings at an average of 57.33 or Quintin De Kock, who also had a blast when IPL 2020 was played in the UAE entirely. Though the duo struggled a bit on the pitches of Chennai during the first leg, they are very well acclimated to the conditions in United Arab Emirates that will definitely add an advantage for them.
Standing at fourth position in the current season, the Rohit Sharma-led team will be definitely looking forward to aiming maximum victories that'd help them reach the finals as their captain is known to be the best when it comes to handling situations under pressure. Undoubtedly, with every factor titled in their favour, Mumbai Indians' eyeing for the finals must be given a thumbs up without any second thoughts in mind.
2. Chennai Super Kings
Holding the record of most appearances in the playoffs as well as the finals in the IPL, CSK is every team's strongest competitor, especially with experienced players on their side, who try to make a statement with control over the games for most of the time. Captain Cool MS Dhoni is the ultimate reason for the team's phenomenal record till date as his decisions are proved to be the best and are credited to be at par, even in consonance with the umpires.
Other than that, the youngsters' performance for the Yellow Army has also been remarkable. Sam Curran and Ruturaj Gaikwad have brought extraordinary results for the team as the former has been in the spotlight for bowling at a strike rate of 16 and taking wickets in the death overs while the latter batted flawlessly in the IPL 2020 season as he became the only CSK player to score three consecutive fifties in the team's history.
Talking about the overall performance in IPL 2021, Chennai Super Kings have won five out of seven matches in the first leg and have regained their strength to become unbeatable yet again after a sudden fall in the 2020 season. Apart from the youngsters, CSK also have one of the best death bowlers like Dwayne Bravo and Ravindra Jadeja in the squad along with the powerful batsmen like MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina and Faf du Plessis. Despite facing backlashes for their dismal form last year, the team has returned back to its blistering form by covering all the bases and will absolutely eye for it's fourth title in IPL 2021.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Aug 27, 2021 06:10 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).