3 IPL teams that will be most affected by unavailability of players

Even though IPL is two months away, the teams are already in a fix and have a major issue to deal with. A large number of international players won't be available for the entire season because of the World Cup.

Cricket Boards of all the countries are trying their level best to protect their players from burning out before the World Cup and are not willing to take any chances about their fitness.

As a result, players from only New Zealand and West Indies will be available for the entire season. While players from Australia and Bangladesh will be available only till the 3rd and 2nd week of April respectively, players from South Africa and Sri Lanka will be available only till early May. Many of the IPL teams have a heavy contingent of players from these teams and their unavailability will affect them in a huge way. Even BCCI is considering giving some of the Indian players some breathing time before the World Cup and it might make these players unavailable for a few matches. Here are the three teams that will be most affected by the absence of international players.

#3 Mumbai Indians

Mumbai Indians are overdependent on Bumrah

International players who are available for the entire season - Evin Lewis, Kieron Pollard, Ben Cutting, Mitchell McClenaghan, Adam Milne

International players whose availability is doubtful - Jasprit Bumrah, Quinton de Kock, Lasith Malinga, Jason Behrendorff

One of the major reasons for Mumbai Indians failing to reach the playoffs last season was the underwhelming performance of their overseas players. They rectified it by picking up Quinton de Kock and Lasith Malinga for IPL 2019, but it might just not be enough to solve Mumbai Indians' woes. Quinton de Kock and Lasith Malinga, who is set to lead Sri Lanka in the World Cup, won't be around for the last two weeks of the season. Also, Jason Behrendorff has been picked in the Australian ODI side and if he does well, he too might not be available for a major part of the tournament.

However, Mumbai Indians team management will be having sleepless nights over the availability of Jasprit Bumrah. There have been talks about managing Bumrah's workload before the World Cup which might result in him missing some of the matches this season. The absence of these crucial players might have a huge bearing on Mumbai Indians' chances this year.

#2 Rajasthan Royals

Stokes and Buttler will head back to England to prepare for the World Cup

International players who are available for the entire season - Liam Livingstone, Ish Sodhi, Oshane Thomas, Ashton Turner

International players whose availability is doubtful - Steve Smith, Jos Buttler, Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer

Rajasthan Royals is one side that has relied heavily on the international players to produce the goods. While they are known to pick lesser known Indian players, they have been very particular about their choices when it comes to overseas players.

However, their choices of overseas players might prove costly for the Royals this time around. Ben Stokes and Jos Buttler are vital for England's dream of winning the coveted World Cup trophy in front of their home crowd and thus will miss a major part of the tournament. Also, Steve Smith, who will make a comeback after the one-year ban, will miss the first week and the last two weeks of the tournament due to national commitments. Things might just get worse for the Royals if England selectors decide to include Jofra Archer in their World Cup squad. Royals' overseas backup players do not have much experience which might prove to be detrimental for the team.

#1 Sunrisers Hyderabad

Warner and Bhuvi have been

integral

part of SRH over the years

International players who are available for the entire season - Martin Guptill, Kane Williamson

International players whose availability is doubtful - Bhuvneshwar Kumar, David Warner, Johnny Bairstow, Rashid Khan, Mohammad Nabi, Billy Stanlake, Shakib Al Hasan

Sunrisers Hyderabad are undoubtedly the pre-tournament favourites of IPL 2019. The Sunrisers seem to have got every base covered and have succeeded in forming a strong bench strength.

However, the unavailability of some big players might affect their chances. Martin Guptill and Kane Williamson are the only overseas players who are sure to play the entire season. While Johnny Bairstow will head back to England in April to prepare for the World Cup, David Warner and Billy Stanlake will miss the first week and the last couple of weeks because of the World Cup preparations. Afghanistan is scheduled to play Scotland in the second week of May and thus, Rashid Khan and Mohammad Nabi's IPL might get cut short. Shakib Al Hasan might also leave IPL in mid-April. Bhuvneshwar Kumar too is extremely crucial for India's chances in the World Cup and thus he might be rested for some games. It is going to be extremely difficult for the Sunrisers to cope with the absence of all these star players.