IPL 2019: 3 strongest teams on paper

The IPL 2019 auction was conducted on the 18th of December. The event provided an opportunity for teams to consolidate their squads from last year and rectify their mistakes, and also to include new and talented Indian domestic players.

In the earlier years, there was a vast gulf between the strongest and the weakest teams in the IPL. However, things have changed, and all the squads are equally balanced now.

In this article, we will take a look at the three most formidable teams on paper in the 2019 edition of the IPL.

#3 Sunrisers Hyderabad

The Sunrisers Hyderabad

The Sunrisers Hyderabad have established themselves in the past few seasons as one of the most formidable teams in the IPL. They retained their core base of players before the auction, with the surprise exception of Shikhar Dhawan who they traded with the Delhi Capitals for Vijay Shankar, Shahbaz Nadeem, and Abhishek Sharma.

SRH's top-order consists of Kane Williamson and the returning David Warner who are their batting mainstays, capable of single-handedly destroying the opposition pacers.

The presence of Manish Pandey, Shakib-al-Hasan, Yusuf Pathan and Deepak Hooda in their middle-order would help prevent a batting collapse. All these players have the capability of capitalizing on good starts from their openers and putting up a good score at the end of the innings.

The Sunrisers Hyderabad have arguably the best bowling the attack among the eight teams. Their pace attack consists of Billy Stanlake, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed and Siddarth Kaul, who have been proven performers for them in the last couple of seasons. Their main spinner Rashid Khan has emerged as the most threatening bowler in the IPL and a key partnership breaker in the middle overs.

Based on their roster, it is quite clear that the Sunrisers Hyderabad are one of the firm favorites to win the prestigious trophy in 2019.

#2 Chennai Super Kings

Chennai Super Kings

CSK are one of the powerhouses in this prestigious tournament, having won the IPL three times already. The key to their success is that they have always built a squad around MS Dhoni, Suresh Raina, Ravindra Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo.

For the next season too, they have retained 22 players and bought an experienced IPL campaigner and former player in the form of Mohit Sharma. Their top-order consisting of Ambati Rayudu and Shane Watson is formidable, and provided several good starts in the last season.

The strength of the Chennai Super Kings is their middle-order, who have frequently rescued the team in times of peril. The addition of Lungi Ngidi and Imran Tahir last year has bolstered their relatively weak bowling department too.

CSK go into the IPL as the defending champions and favorites to continue their winning run.

#1 Mumbai Indians

The Mumbai Indians have got a massive fan following around the world due to their incredible performances in the last few seasons. Along with the Chennai Super Kings, Mumbai are the only two franchises to win the IPL three times.

Having got Quinton De Kock in the trade window, the Mumbai Indians showed faith in many players acquired last season by retaining them. At the auction, they got back their former spearhead Lasith Malinga and invested in Indian players like Barinder Sran and the veteran Yuvraj Singh.

With Rohit Sharma playing in the top-order, the Pandya brothers featuring in the middle-order and Jasprit Bumrah spearheading the bowling attack, Mumbai Indians have strengthened their side on paper in this auction. Also, the addition of Yuvraj Singh gives them an extra option in the middle-order.

It goes without saying that MI are one of the teams to beat at the IPL in 2019.