IPL 2019: 3 teams in need of change in captaincy

The roller-coaster IPL 2019 season is finally over with Mumbai Indians becoming the first ever team to win the trophy four times. They peaked at the right time, and their traditional dominance over Chennai Super Kings turned out to be crucial in a nail-biting final.

Apart from these two teams though, quite a few of the others went through periods of prolonged struggle. Those teams are now in the process of looking for ways to improve their structure and performance going into the 2020 season.

A team's performance often represents how good the captain is, especially in a league like IPL where each franchise has great players from all over the globe. Some captains this season made hutactical blunders, while some others failed to inspire their players enough. Still others were undeserving of a place in the team owing to their terrible run of form.

Here's a look at three teams that would do well to look for a change in captaincy next season:

#1 Royal Challengers Bangalore

The three-time finalists had yet another forgettable season. Their hopes of winning a title are becoming dimmer by the minute as for the third year running, they failed to make it to the playoffs.

It is doubtful but not impracticable for them to change their regular skipper for the first time since 2011.

Many experts, including former Indian opener Gautam Gambhir, have criticized Kohli's captaincy in the IPL. Given that Kohli has been with RCB from the start and that he scored 464 runs this season, it is bizarre to think of him being removed from the team. However, given that Aussie captain Aaron Finch will be available in the auction next year, RCB might just want to catch hold of him and hand him the cap.

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#2 Kolkata Knight Riders

For the two-time champions, not making it to the playoffs will definitely be a disappointment. They were given a lifeline in the final game of the league stage but failed to grab it as they lost to the Mumbai Indians and crashed to the 5th spot on the points table. Their captain Dinesh Karthik also came under intense scrutiny for the tactical blunders he made in some matches.

Dinesh Karthik in a conversation with Andre Russel (Image Courtesy: BCCI/iplt20.com)

After Kolkata's six-game losing streak, Andre Russell commented on the poor atmosphere within the team, a statement that raised a few eyebrows. That was followed by Karthik being spotted speaking angrily with Russell after the latter was hit for a lot of runs in a crucial do or die match for the team. The strategic timeout also saw a heated exchange between the captain and the players.

There seems to be discontent brewing within the KKR team, which doesn't reflect too well on the captain - especially since the performances of the team have also taken a down-turn.

If the Knight Riders do consider a new captain, Karthik's retention in the team is not certain as he scored only 253 runs from the 14 matches this season.

#3 Sunrisers Hyderabad

Kane Williamson (Image Courtesy: BCCI/iplt20.com)

Finalists last year, the Sunrisers Hyderabad produced far from a convincing performance in the 2019 season. After the departure of David Warner and Jonny Bairstow for the World Cup preparations, the team lacked batting depth with only Manish Pandey stepping up.

SRH did become the first team ever to qualify for the playoffs with as few as 12 points, but they were clearly the weakest team in the final four. That was reinforced by the fact that they lost in the very first match of the playoffs - the eliminator - to Delhi Capitals.

Kane Williamson, their captain, had a terrible IPL season as he scored only 156 runs. Him taking up the 4th overseas spot often caused an all-rounder like Mohammed Nabi or Shakib Al Hasan to miss out.

Since the Sunrisers are a team brimming with leadership skils in the likes of Warner (former SRH captain and former Australian vice-captain), Rashid Khan (Afghanistan T20 captain), Mohammed Nabi (former Afghanistan captain) and Shakib Al Hasan (former Bangladesh captain) there is a possibility of Williamson being released from the team.