IPL 2018: 4 reasons why the Kings XI Punjab are favourites to win the IPL

The Indian Premier League(IPL) had a wonderful first decade filled with thrill, excitement and emotions. The action moved to different countries and plenty of cities. Three out of the eight current franchises are yet to register their name on the IPL trophy. The Kings XI Punjab are accompanied by the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Delhi Daredevils in the unwanted list.

The Kings XI Punjab have managed to reach the playoffs only twice. They started their IPL campaign with a lot of promise in the first season as they reached the semi-finals and secured the third spot. Their best performance came under the leadership of George Bailey who led them to the finals in 2014. The side from the north went down to the Kolkata Knight Riders in the final.

The IPL will now enter into its second decade and the Kings XI Punjab fans would want their franchise to rewrite history. The team would look to start afresh as a new season approaches. The Kings XI setup looks balanced this time. According to their mentor Virender Sehwag, the franchise has the set of players which have the capability to win them the IPL trophy.

Here's the complete squad for the Punjab side for IPL 2018:

Axar Patel, Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuvraj Singh, Karun Nair, KL Rahul, Chris Gayle, David Miller, Aaron Finch, Marcus Stoinis, Mayank Agarwal, Ankit Rajpoot, Manoj Tiwary, Mohit Sharma, Mujeeb Zadran, Barinder Sran, Andrew Tye, Akshdeep Nath, Ben Dwarshuis, Pardeep Sahu, Mayank Dagar, Manzoor Dar

On this note, let us take a look at five reasons why Kings XI Punjab might surprise other oppositions on this occasion.

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#1 A new skipper

This will be Ashwin's first instance of captaining a side in T20 cricket

Any captain can only do his best for the team and for cricket. When you are winning, you are a hero. Lose, and the backslappers fade away: Richie Benaud

This famous quote by 'the voice of cricket' Richie Benaud defines Ravichandran Ashwin the best. The announcement of Ravichandran Ashwin as the captain of the Kings XI Punjab brought a feeling of dismay for the Punjab fans. In the presence of Yuvraj Singh, Aaron Finch and veteran T20 player Chris Gayle the fans could not see Ashwin as a captain.

Virender Sehwag later explained the reason for having a bowler as the captain. Sehwag believes that a bowler can understand the game better and it is important to understand the tactics in the shorter version of the game. Ashwin was named as the captain of the Tamil Nadu side when he was a 20-year-old. Other senior players were busy playing the ICL and he was handed the responsibility of the side in the Vijay Hazare Trophy.

The off-spinner led Tamil Nadu to a Vijay Hazare Trophy title. When he captained Tamil Nadu as an experienced player in 2015 his captaincy was proactive: he used different fields, rotated the attack, and kept chatting with the younger bowlers. This will be his first experience of captaining a side in the shorter version but the spin maestro is ready for the challenge. He will be raring to go and that is a boost for the Punjab side.

#2 Batting depth

Remember the 38-ball 100?

The Kings XI Punjab made a strong case for themselves after procuring fiery batsmen in the auction. Their batting lineup is considered to be one of the best batting lineups of the tournament with the presence of overseas batsmen like Aaron Finch, David Miller and Chris Gayle. They did not lack behind in Indian talent picking up the likes of in-form Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul, Karun Nair and Punjab's former boy Yuvraj Singh.

The franchise from the north will play four of its seven home games at the Holkar Stadium in Indore. The Holkar Stadium is famous for its short boundaries which provide plenty of runs for the batsmen and double the entertainment for the crowd. The Kings have a wonderful batting lineup which can destroy even the best bowling lineups on their day.

In the first match, Chris Gayle is expected to open the batting with domestic sensation Mayank Agarwal. Karun Nair will take the number three slot with KL Rahul and Yuvraj Singh to follow. David Miller will take the finishing responsibilities alongside all-rounder Marcus Stoinis.

Aaron Finch will miss the first game due to his marriage. He will make a comeback later and strengthen the batting further. The franchise will have Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel slotted at number eight and number nine. The depth in their batting seems unbelievable and a few early wickets won't hurt them.

#3 A bowling lineup for the T20s

How many wickets will the backhand slow ball get this time?

Kings XI Punjab's bowling lineup looks like a perfect one for T20 cricket. Their captain Ravichandran Ashwin will understand the bowlers better and give them the confidence to go out there and express themselves on the field. The likes of Barinder Sran, Mohit Sharma, Mujeeb Zadran, Andrew Tye and Axar Patel makes the Punjab bowling unit a strong one.

They have Barinder Sran to swing the new ball around. Ashwin may start the proceedings if the opening batsmen of the opposition side are left-handers, otherwise, Mohit Sharma will start from the other end. Their middle overs are well covered with the presence of two spinners in the form of Ashwin and Axar. Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis will also chip in with his overs at the middle stage of the innings.

The presence of T20 specialist Andrew Tye would mean that they have their death bowling covered as well. Mohit Sharma will take the backhand slow balls out from his armoury. It will be interesting to see if Sharma has worked on new variations before the start of the IPL or not. The bench strength looks solid too with the presence of pacer Ben Dwarshius, spinner Mayank Dagar and Afghan sensation Mujeeb Zadran.

#4 The return of the King

Yuvraj Singh is back to where he belongs

After spending eight years away from his state-based franchise Yuvraj Singh is back to the franchise he started his career at. In the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008 Yuvraj Singh started his IPL career as an icon player for the Kings XI Punjab. Following his poor form, he was removed as the icon player in 2010. His captaincy stint for KXIP was unimpressive as he did not get them going in the league.

In the second decade of the IPL, a much more experienced Yuvraj Singh is coming back to the Kings XI Punjab. He was wounded after the 2010 season and as they say, a wounded lion is more dangerous than a healthy one. Once in for all the lion will come back to where he belongs to stamp his authority and dominance. This can be a breakthrough moment for Yuvi's career and this career defying IPL may even help him to make an international comeback.

In the process, Yuvraj will regain his lost pride and help the Kings XI to success. Even with this kind of batting lineup Yuvraj Singh's name should be written in bold.

With an incredible set of players, the Kings XI Punjab would want to convert this opportunity to a golden one as they will look to get their hands on the ever shining trophy.