5 talking points from the first week of IPL 2019

We are into the 12th season of the biggest and the most-entertaining T20 tournament in the world, the Indian Premier League. The first week has gone by, and we have already seen some hard-hitting, record-shattering performances, amidst a fair share of controversies.

The opening encounter saw two of the biggest names in world cricket, Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni, go head-to-head against each other, in what turned out to be a rather underwhelming affair. There was some discussion around the kind of pitches that should be prepared for opening encounters of tournaments as huge as this, because the opening match between the Super Kings and the Royal Challengers left fans a bit disappointed.

However, the rest of the week gave us some sensational batting performances from the likes of Sanju Samson, Nitish Rana, Andre Russell and others. There was also a lot of buzz about David Warner and Steve Smith, who made their long-awaited returns to the IPL for their respective franchises.

As usual, the season has already generated some note-worthy discussions about the sport of cricket. From R.Ashwin's mankading incident which saw Jos Buttler walking off, to S.Ravi's erroneous umpiring which saw Mumbai Indians get away with a last-ball no-ball; this year's season has already been memorable.

This year's edition of the IPL is also important in terms of its implications on the team selections for the upcoming World Cup in England. Aaron Finch, the Australian captain, has already talked about how the returns of Warner and Smith will make for some hard decisions. India's No.4 conundrum will most likely be solved by taking IPL performances into consideration, as a number of names have been flowing in the air for a while now for the said position.

Before the IPL goes into the next gear, let's take a look as to what was worth talking about during the very first week of IPL 2019.

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#5 The 'Old Guns' are BACK!

Chennai SuperKings played just three foreigners in the first match against RCB

While T20 is always known to be the version of the game dominated by the young and the more athletic individuals, the 'old stalwarts' are here to prove everyone wrong. In the very first match of the tournament, Harbhajan Singh spun a web around the Bangalore batting line-up and finished up with figures of 3-20. His fellow Super Kings teammate, Imran Tahir, has been quite lethal as well with his variations and is the current 'purple cap' holder with 6 wickets.

Fans were jubilant to see Gayle bring the 'Gayle Storm' back to IPL, decimating opposition bowling attacks. He has already smacked 13 fours and 10 sixes in the tournament so far, and it's safe to assume that there is more to come. Gayle's form will be critical to Punjab's success at this year's IPL .

Yuvraj Singh, who is representing the Mumbai Indians this season, kicked-off the tournament with a fine fifty against one of the tougher bowling attacks in the IPL, the Delhi Capitals. His short and sweet stint against the Royal Challengers was very reminiscent of his performance in the 2007 T20 World Cup against England, as he struck three continuous sixes off Chahal, before his eventual dismissal.

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#4 The 'Young Blood' is Here to STAY!

Sanju Samson is the resident No.3 for the Rajasthan Royals

Fans were treated to one of the most fascinating innings in IPL history, as Sanju Samson of the Rajasthan Royals scored the first ton of this tournament. He showed everyone that it's not always about ruthless power-hitting or innovative stroke-play; gentle-manoeuvring of the cricket ball can also get the job done. The way he scored runs off Bhuvneshwar Kumar, one of the best death-bowlers in the world right now, led fans and cricket pundits to compare him to the legendary Mahela Jayawardene.

Nitish Rana from the Kolkata Knight Riders has looked in fine touch so far, having already scored two fifties in just three games. His fellow Knight, Andre Russell joined in the party too, scoring 163 runs while also picking up 5 wickets from just 3 matches. If they both continue on their merry way, Kolkata Knight Riders will definitely go a long way in this tournament.

If we talk about the Delhi Capitals who have started the tournament on a good note this time around, the franchise will be delighted to see both Prithvi Shaw and Rishabh Pant bring out their A-game. The Delhi fans have longed for an IPL win for their team and maybe, with the Indian batting trio of Shaw-Shreyas Iyer-Rishabh Pant, coupled with Dhawan's experience at the top and Rabada's menacing bowling, this could be their year.

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#3 What is 'Going On' with the RCB?

Royal Challengers Bangalore have never won the IPL

Royal Challengers of Bangalore entered this edition with much fanfare and huge expectations. Virat Kohli, the captain of the side, talked about the balance in the team and how a strong middle order will prove fruitful to their chances in the IPL. However, the team's poor batting performances against the Super Kings and the Sunrisers have clearly jolted their momentum. There have been questions surrounding the team selections and Kohli's captaincy .

Upto this point, nothing has worked in their favour, not even umpiring decisions. The team will have to bounce back quickly and will have to fire on all cylinders in their upcoming match against the Rajasthan Royals.

The two sides are yet to notch up a win in this year's tournament and are lagging towards the bottom of the league table. The Rajasthan Royals though, have looked much better as compared to the Royal Challengers in their three outings, but they have been unable to get over the line.

All is not lost for Virat Kohli's men as these are still early days in what is a pretty long tournament. Also, Bangalore has been missing key players in the form of Marcus Stoinis and Nathan Coulter-Nile, who were involved in the Australia-Pakistan ODI series. These two Aussies could prove to be useful additions to the team and hopefully, could breathe new life into the Royal Challengers.

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#2 CSK's Mantra: Eat, Sleep, Win IPL and Repeat.

Chennai SuperKings are the defending Champions

There is no team across the globe which has quite a fan-base like the Chennai SuperKings does. Whether it was flocking in trains to see their team compete at Pune last year, or to give their 'Thalaiva' Dhoni a hero's ovation even at practice matches, or to the colour the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in a sea of yellow, Chennai fans are always upto the task. The team has returned the fans' love and blessings with three IPL tournament wins, and one could say, are well on their way towards a fourth one.

No team in the IPL has enjoyed success quite like the Chennai Super Kings have. The defending Champions have started the tournament on a high note, and are yet to lose a game. They have ticked all the boxes so far when it comes to the different aspects of the game. Their bowling department led by Imran Tahir is doing wonders for them.

Their batting hasn't been tested quite yet, except in their last game against Rajasthan, which saw MS Dhoni come back to form with a blistering 75 off just 46 balls. Dhoni was in full flow and back to his usual best, as he started on a cautious note and then destroyed bowlers towards the back-end of the innings, smashing 3 sixes in Unadkat's last over. His brilliance with the bat coupled with his unmatched understanding of the game have been one of the biggest reasons for the success of the SuperKings.

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#1 It's been the Warner-Bairstow Show!

Sunrisers Hyderabad were the runners-up in IPL 2018

Given the depth and quality of their squad, the Sunrisers Hyderabad have always been a tough opposition to win against. There was a cloud of uncertainty hanging over the Sunrisers this year, with Williamson dealing with an injury; Warner making his comeback and Shikhar Dhawan departing from the team. But all those questions and doubts, if there were any, have been silenced by the English-Australian duo of David Warner- Jonny Bairstow.

The newly-formed opening pair of Warner-Bairstow has dismantled opposition bowling line-ups, with the duo notching up 50+ opening stands in all their games so far. Warner and Bairstow are respectively No.1 and No.2 on the list of most runs scored in this year's IPL. In their match against the Royal Challengers, these two set the record for the highest first-wicket partnership (185 runs) in IPL history.

Considering the fact that Bairstow has always been seen as Test player, his debut season in the IPL has left fans and cricket pundits bewildered, as to why he wasn't picked earlier. It just took him three games to score his first IPL hundred, as he scored a jaw-dropping 114 off just 56 balls.

His partner-in-crime, the current 'orange-cap-holder' David Warner is leaving no stone unturned to announce his comeback. In the three games played in this year's IPL so far, Warner has scored two fifties and a hundred, taking his total to 254 runs at an average of 127.00.

Another thing to notice is the speed at which these two score their runs, with both Warner and Bairstow having a strike rate of over 160. The left hand-right hand combination works well to offset bowlers right at the start, allowing them to feast on the loose deliveries.

The Sunrisers look a formidable team to deal with, possessing one of the best bowling attacks in the IPL. With Warner and Bairstow in scintillating form, the Sunrisers are definitely the team to beat.