IPL 2018: 5 talking points after the first round of games

After all the preseason hype and analysis, the action finally shifted on to the cricket field. The Indian Premier League got off an eventful start with a lot of surprises. There were as many as five debutants in the opening four matches. With new captains Ravichandran Ashwin and Dinesh Karthik, Kings XI and Kolkata Knight Riders posted comfortable victories. The same can't be said of CSK who had to pull off one of the best ever comebacks in the history of IPL to register a win in the comeback match from their ban. Mumbai Indians have a lot to think about their death bowling after their performances against CSK. The Rajsthan's comeback from the ban was not as sweet as CSK's as succumbed to confidence-sapping defeat. The defeats for RCB and DD left them a lot to ponder over about their lineups for the upcoming matches.

So here are the five talking from the first round of fixtures:

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#1 CSK's bowling lineup

When the team sheets came out for the opening match a lot were taken back by the sheer number of bowlers the Super Kings had in their lineup. The Super Kings had as many as 7 bowlers, along with part-timers in the form of Raina and Jadhav to chip in with two or three overs, making it 9 bowlers.

So obviously when that many bowlers, you will not be able to use all of them properly. The spin trio of Jadeja, Tahir and Harbhajan bowled only five overs conceding 46 runs and picking up just a wicket of Ishan Kishan. While these three will be deadly in places like Chepauk where the pitch suits them, the CSK think-tank needs a take look into the lineup again for the away matches as these many bowlers in the lineup left them vulnerable with the bat against Mumbai Indians.

#2 RCB's bowling lineup

When CSK stacked their lineup with a flurry of bowlers, RCB was doing the exact opposite as they had only 5 leading bowlers with captain Kohli himself as their next best option(if he can even be counted as one). In T20 cricket where there is a need to have minimum six bowlers, it was a baffling decision to go in with only five bowlers from the RCB management and it backfired on them.

When Narine got going and thrashed the leading bowlers all around the park Kohli had nowhere to go with his bowling options. Going forward, RCB has to find a way to accommodate an all-rounder in their line up otherwise they might have to say goodbye to their title hopes soon.

#3 DJ Bravo's all-round show

Mumbai Indians were on their way to victory at the Wankhede but Bravo had other ideas. He changed the course of the match, first with the ball and then with the bat. He came into bowl at the death and gave away just 11 runs from his last three overs, which is extraordinary in any circumstances and he was the difference between MI getting to 180 and finishing at 168 but he was just getting started.

When he came into bat CSK were in a spot of bother but he played a blinder of a innings. He took the match deep and tore apart the bowlers in the last few overs of the match, setting up a memorable victory for CSK.

#4 KL Rahul's Blitzkrieg

Chasing 167 for victory against a solid DD bowling lineup is not at all an easy job but in came KL Rahul and he made a mockery of the target just like Sehwag, who is the current coach of the Kings XI.

Rahul demolished the bowling lineup, especially Amit Mishra as he scored 24 runs from his first over and went onto to record the fastest fifty in the history of IPL in just 14 balls.More than the runs , it is the way in which he got those runs impressed everyone as he got into good positions and relied more on timing and placement rather power. He looks determined to justify his hefty price tag and he has started that process with a bang.

#5 Solid bowling performance of SRH

Of all the team's bowlers so far only SRH bowlers looked dominant. They were on their mark right from the word go picking up wickets at regular intervals to restrict a solid RR line up to a paltry 125 to set up an easy win for their team. All the bowlers were among the wickets which is always a good thing for the team. They are performing like a well-oiled machine which has a fine blend of youth and experience in the likes of Rashid Khan, Shakib Al Hasan, Siddarth Kaul and Bhuvneshwar Kumar. SRH has always been built around their bowlers and this season too, it looks the same as their bowlers have sent out a warning to other teams with their solid all-round bowling effort.