IPL 2019: Best opening bowler for each team

The Indian Premier League brought in revolutionary changes in the style of cricket which was being played, with more emphasis on innovation, strike-rate and big sixes than on the traditional building an innings. More importantly, it brought into play the art of death bowling and batsmen decided to go after bowlers in the death or 'slog' overs.

But one concept from the traditional style of playing it couldn't change and that was the importance of the opening spell in a match. The opening bowlers and the overs bowled in the power play are crucial in every game. There have been few bowlers in the IPL who open the bowling and pick up early wickets almost every single time.

Each team will want to have a good opening bowler and it needn't be only a pacer, even a hard to get-off spinner can do well with the new ball.

Let's take a look at these strike bowlers and who the best opening bowler for each team is.

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#1 Chennai Super Kings - Deepak Chahar

Deepak Chahar- CSK's find of the season

The Chennai Super Kings found a good opening bowler and a great talent in Deepak Chahar last season. Chahar was given ample opportunities to prove his mettle and he did so with conviction. The pacer picked up 10 wickets from 12 matches and opened the bowling in every match for the champions.

Chahar bowled at a very good economy rate of 7.28, considering that he delivers most of his overs during the power play when the field restrictions are on. He made his debut for he Indian team in both T20Is and in ODIs and is now playing for the India A side.

Chahar is always in contention for a national call-up and will be a much more seasoned bowler this season. He will be in contention with fiery Lungi Ngidi for the new ball but the fact that this is where Chahar prefers to bowl while Ngidi can operate at all times of the match will make Chahar key at the start of the innings.

#2 Delhi Capitals - Trent Boult

Trent Boult

The Delhi Capitals possess feisty, experienced and deadly overseas fast bowlers in their squad roster and it's difficult to decide which one should get the nod ahead of the other. While Morris and Rabada will battle it out for a place, I personally back Trent Boult to comfortably make it to the starting XI.

Boult is a natural wicket-taker and is known for the zip he produces and the lateral movement towards the pads of a right-hander. The angle he produces as a left-arm seamer contradicts well with the direction of swing and makes life difficult for the batsman. Though there are other options, none of them can match the prowess of Boult with the new ball. Sandeep Lamichhane can be a differential option to open the bowling with his wrist-spin. The fact that he'll be available for the entire tournament further strengthens his case.

#3 Kings XI Punjab - Ankit Rajpoot

Ankit Rajpoot celebrates after taking his 5-fer

Ankit Rajpoot will be the best choice to open the bowling for the Kings XI Punjab this season. There will be a lot of competition for the overseas spots but one certainty will be Ankit Rajpoot, the Indian pacer. Rajpoot impressed one and all with his great bout of swing bowling and picked up 8 wickets in 11 matches the last season, including a 5-wicket haul.

Rajpoot has raw pace but combines it well with swing both ways and often strikes timber and cleans up opening batsmen with ease. Mujeeb Ur Rahman will also be a strong contention with the new ball especially after his performance in the last season and in the BBL as well. Young Sam Curran, their most expensive overseas signing at the auction, too will be another option but right now, Ankit Rajpoot seems to be the best option for KXIP to toss the new ball to.

#4 Kolkata Knight Riders - Sunil Narine

It's very hard to score runs off Sunil Narine

Sunil Narine, the mystery spinner will be KKR's best choice to open the bowling as no conventional choices remain. Lockie Ferguson seems to be the only overseas pacer with international pedigree and even he can't make the best use of the new ball. It will be a toss-up to decide between Shivam Mavi and Kamlesh Nagarkoti and both are quite new to the IPL and shouldn't be asked to open the bowling all of a sudden.

With all the regular pacers done and dusted with, only Sunil Narine remains. Though players like Piyush Chawla have opened the bowling previously, it was only to counter certain aggressive openers like Brendon Mccullum and Shane Watson and was never a permanent fixture. Narine has continued bowling in the power play in other T20 leagues and this role isn't new for him. His wickets tally and miserly economy rate justify this selection and Narine is certainly suited to both opening the batting as well as the bowling.

#5 Mumbai Indians - Jasprit Bumrah

Bumrah celebrates after taking a wicket

Finding the right player to open the bowling for the Mumbai Indians isn't as easy as doing so for the other teams. They have tried out many bowlers to don the role of the opening bowler but they change it ever so constantly so as to suit the pitch and who the opening batsmen of the opposition are. Part of their success can be attributed to this unpredictability but they need someone to turn to to take up the role of an opening bowler and that person should be Jasprit Bumrah.

Bumrah is certainly better in the death overs, that's a certainty. But that doesn't mean that he lacks quality bowling with the new ball. He's been very effective partnering Bhuvi with the new ball for India and though he doesn't swing the ball too much, he extracts enough movement from the pitch in order to create problems for the batsman. He's Rohit Sharma's trump card and most the trusted bowler and though there'll be options like Krunal, Hardik, Mclenaghan, Malinga or even Behrendorff, he's the one to watch out for.

#6 Rajasthan Royals - Jofra Archer

Jofra Archer

Jofra Archer will be the best and safest bet to open the bowling for the Rajasthan Royals. The Hobart Hurricanes' pacer has taken the new ball on numerous occasions but didn't do so in the IPL last season. Dhawal Kulkarni's presence meant that Archer never got to open the bowling but the former's torrid last season will open the gateways for young Jofra to take the new ball in hand.

He has a very short run-up but manages to generate tremendous pace in that little time and hits the deck pretty hard. His unexpected bouncers combined with the regular good length and slightly fuller length deliveries can make life difficult for any batsmen. Archer is not just raw pace, he has plenty of tricks up his sleeve which he shows during the death overs. He also swings the ball to a fair extent and with his natural wicket-taking ability, he is a clear candidate for the opening bowler slot.

#7 Royal Challengers Bangalore - Umesh Yadav

Umesh Yadav

This is a no-brainer. Umesh Yadav was the standout bowler for the RCB side last year and bowled more than 75% of his overs in the power play. He's a strike bowler and is known for his ability to take early wickets and trouble opposition openers. Umesh picked up 20 wickets in 14 matches and was on a roll with the new ball in hand. His economy of 7.86 shows that he didn't leak too many runs in the power play.

His bowling strike-rate and average of 15.95 and 20.80 illustrate his ability and he easily trumps competition with players like Siraj, Coulter-Nile or even Marcus Stoinis. Yadav swings the ball very well and bowls at an excess of 140 KPH, even hitting the fringes of the 150-mark. A well tried and tested out player, Umesh Yadav should open the bowling for RCB.

#8 Sunrisers Hyderabad - Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Bhuvi has been a SRH mainstay for a long time now.

Out of all the players on this list, Bhuvneshwar Kumar is the best because he does this for every team he plays in. Bhuvi has been India's opening bowler for a long time in almost every game he plays in and to do that, he has to ooze quality and he does. Though he had a sub-par IPL last season, Bhuvneshwar has an IPL record which his hard to overlook. With a career economy of just 7.15 and 120 wickets, Bhuvi has had great outings in the IPL.

He's more of a swing bowler and doesn't hit a great speed but bowls fast enough to trouble the batsman with the movement he generates. His run-up and seam position before release are perfect and he creates many opportunities for early breakthroughs whenever he's given the ball. He has also expanded his arsenal to bowling in the death and has excelled there as well. One of the most complete bowlers in the league, Bhuvi is the best opening bowler for the SRH side.

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