IPL 2018: Teams that can win the title this season

The eleventh edition of the great Indian summer fest is all set to kick-off on April 7, 2018 at the Wankhede stadium, where the Mumbai Indians meet the Chennai Super Kings. Two teams- the Rajasthan Royal and Chennai Super Kings will be returning to the IPL after a two-year ban.

All the eight teams have formed a strong squad for this season and it is almost uncertain to predict this season's winner. But certain teams have formed a formidable squad which looks balanced in all the departments. Let us now look at the teams who can go all the way with the kind of players and the strategies they boast of.

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#3) Delhi Daredevils

Delhi Daredevils

The Delhi Daredevils are the only side not to have reached the finals at least once in the first decade of the IPL. With local hero and two-time IPL winning captain Gautam Gambhir returning to the Kotla, the Daredevils will fancy their chances this season. They have Gautam Gambhir, Colin Munro, Prithvi Shaw and Manjot Kalra to fill the opening slots this season. The Gambhir-Munro combo might be deadly if they get going, but the Daredevils might be tempted to field Jason Roy with Gambhir.

The two talented Under-19 World cup winning boys Shaw and Kalra also get opportunities to showcase their skills. The emerging Indian wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant and Shreyas Iyer might be competing for the number three spot. The explosive Punjab batsman Gurkeerat Mann and quality all-rounders like Chris Morris, Daniel Christian, Vijay Shankar might well form the strong middle-order for Delhi. In the spin department, they have got Amir Mishra, Jayant Yadav, Sandeep Lamichhane, Shahbaz Nadeem and Rahul Tewatia.

Star players like Trent Boult, Mohammed Shami and all-rounder Chris Morris strengthen their pace attack, while the injury to Kagiso Rabada will be a major blow Delhi. Domestic bowlers like Harshal Patel, Sayan Ghosh, and Avesh Khan will be the exciting prospects to watch out for in the pace department. The experienced Naman Ojha will be striving for the wicketkeeper’s spot with Rishabh Pant. With Ricky Ponting, Praveen Amre and James Hopes to constitute the core of the support staffs and Gambhir at the helm, one might expect the Daredevils might go all the way this season.

#2 Sunrisers Hyderabad

Sunrisers Hyderabad

The 2016 IPL champions will no doubt miss their regular skipper, David Warne, who is serving a one-year ban from the game due to the involvement in the shocking Sandpaper gate. The fans of the Orange army will be looking forward to a successful season under their new skipper Kane Williamson, who seems to be perfect contender to replace David Warner. Alex Hales and Shikhar Dhawan will most likely open the innings for the Sunrisers, given the right-left combination and also the fact that there are no better alternates. The middle-order consists of their new skipper Kane Williamson, Manish Pandey, Ricky Bhui and Sachin Baby.

They boast of one of the strongest set of lower middle-order as well as the all-rounders this season. Having all-rounders like Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan, Carlos Brathwaite, Deepak Hooda, and Mohammad Nabi will be priceless in this format of the game. In the spin department, they have the Afghan sensation and the number one ranked T20 bowler, Rashid Khan along with Bipul Sharma. They will be complemented by the spin-bowling all-rounders- Yusuf and Shakib who can bowl some useful spells between them. The Sunrisers boast of the most prolific Indian pacers in their squad this season.

They have Bhuvneshwar Kumar-the Purple cap winner of the last two editions, Basil Thampi- Emerging player of the last year, Sandeep Sharma, Siddharth Kaul Khaleel Ahmed and T Natarajan. The overseas pacers like Chris Jordan and Billy Stanlake further strengthen their pace department. Indian test wicketkeeper Wriddhiman Saha will be their first-choice, while Shreevats Goswami might also don the gloves behind the stumps this season. With Tom Moody at the helm and Muralitharan and VVS Laxman as their bowling coach and mentor respectively, Williamson’s boys might go on to win their second IPL crown this season.

#1 Royal Challengers Bangalore

Royal Challengers Bangalore

The Royal Challengers who are yet to win the title are one of the unluckiest sides in the IPL, having lost three finals- in 2009, 2011 and 2016. With a strong and balanced squad both their skipper Virat Kohli and the fans are desperate for the title. They have plentiful options for the opening combination- Brendon McCullum, Quinton de Kock, Parthiv Patel, Manan Vohra and, of course, the mighty Virat Kohli if he wants to promote himself as an opener. The Parthiv-McCullum combo might most probably open, given the fact that it will be a right-left combination.

If Kohli decides to play at his usual number three position, then the RCB’s middle order might be unstoppable. They have Mr.360° AB de Villiers, Sarfraz Khan, and Mandeep Singh. Either Parthiv Patel or Quinto de Kock will don the glove behind the stumps for the Royal Challengers this season. They have an enormous pool of the all-rounders in Moeen Ali, Chris Woakes, Colin de Grandhomme, Corey Anderson, Washington Sundar and Pawan They possess the in-form Indian wrist-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar, Murugan Ashwin, Pawan Negi and the part-timer Moeen Ali in the spin department. In the fast bowling department, they consist of several talented Indian pacers like Umesh Yadav Aniket Choudhary, Mohammed Siraj, Kulwant Khejroliya and Navdeep Saini.

In addition, overseas stars like Tim Southee, Corey Anderson, Chris Woakes and Colin de Grandhomme strengthen their pace attack. Above all, they have the most charismatic leader in Virat Kohli whose hunger for runs and success never ceases. With one of the most vibrant support staffs team comprising of the legendary Gary Kirsten, Ashish Nehra and Daniel Vettori and a vociferous Chinnaswamy crowd, they can go all the way this season and claim their maiden IPL title.