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Indian Premier League is all about entertainment and the crowd wants to witness competitive games. T20 format is a batsman's game that dominates over the bowlers more often than not and is more aggressive. On numerous occasions, the batting sides lose their plot while being over attacking and cost the team a game. To avoid these situations to occur frequently, there is a need for a batsman to take up the role of sheet anchor who can play solidly from one end and switch gears according to the situation. This makes it easier for the other batsman to play more freely without thinking much about losing their wicket.
Here is a list of one batsman from each franchise who can perform that role.
#1 Suresh Raina (Chennai Super Kings)
Suresh Raina has been one of the most consistent batsmen in the Indian Premier League and one of the reasons why Chennai Super Kings (CSK) has been successful throughout the tournament history. The southpaw is the most experienced player in the IPL, having played 193 matches and often called Mr. IPL for his dedication.
Coming in at number 3, the 33-year-old cricketer being the most dependable run-scorer for CSK, should try and keep his end solid while Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni, and others can play more freely around him.
IPL Career: Matches - 193, Runs - 5364, Avg. - 33.34, SR - 137.14, HS - 100*
#2 Shreyas Iyer (Delhi Capitals)
Shreyas Iyer joined the Delhi-based franchise in 2015 and turned into their full-time captain in the 2018 edition of the IPL. The Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper is one of the most consistent batsmen for them with a calm and composed head on his shoulders.
Also see – IPL 2020 Teams
DC is loaded with power hitters like Shikhar Dhawan, Prithvi Shaw, Rishabh Pant, Shimron Hetmyer, and Marcus Stoinis who can wreak havoc in any conditions on their day. The 25-year-old batsman, who mostly bats at one-drop, is more suited to play a sheet anchor role as it gives the other batters to play their natural game.
IPL Career: Matches - 62, Runs - 1681, Avg. - 30.56, SR - 126.96, HS - 96
#3 Mayank Agarwal (Kings XI Punjab)
Going into IPL 2020, Kings XI Punjab has arguably the most devastating batting line-up on paper with the presence of KL Rahul and Chris Gayle at the top and the likes of Mayank Agarwal, Glenn Maxwell, Nicholas Pooran, Karun Nair, James Neesham in the middle-order.
To convert this strength into a success story, KXIP could bank on Mayank Agarwal to keep his end risk free so that other heavyweights can try and dominate the opposition bowlers. Though the 28-year-old batsman has not tasted a lot of success in IPL, he is currently in the form of his life and would like to utilise it to the fullest.
Last year, the Karnataka batsman tried too hard to counter-attack the opponents, thereby losing consistency. This year, he should step up to play more responsibly and help others play around him.
IPL Career: Matches - 77, Runs - 1266, Avg. - 18.34, SR - 128.13, HS - 68
#4 Shubman Gill (Kolkata Knight Riders)
Since letting go Robin Uthappa and Chris Lynn, Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) will put the onus on Shubman Gill to open the batting. The 20-year-old batsman is someone who likes to play the long innings rather than brisk cameos and is most suited to play the sheet anchor role for the 2-time champs.
KKR has attacking options in Sunil Narine, Nitish Rana, Eoin Morgan, Andre Russell, and skipper Dinesh Karthik which makes it crucial for the Punjab cricketer to hold one end and allow the rest to take more risks.
IPL Career: Matches - 27, Runs - 499, Avg. - 33.26, SR - 132.36, HS - 76
#5 Rohit Sharma (Mumbai Indians)
Mumbai Indians (MI) have an aggressive set of batsmen in Quinton de Kock, the recently signed Chris Lynn, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, Suryakumar Yadav and have often struggled when their top order has failed. MI needs a batsman who can guide the innings and take control of the game, thereby allowing others to have a crack at it.
Skipper Rohit Sharma is a perfect player to take up this role as he mostly bats in the top 3 and might be willing to open with de Kock and Lynn on some occasions which will need him to lower the gear and take the risks out of the equation from his end.
IPL Career: Matches - 188, Runs - 4898, Avg. - 31.60, SR - 130.82, HS - 109*
Note: All statistics as of February 7, 2020
#6 Robin Uthappa (Rajasthan Royals)
Rajasthan Royals (RR) recently roped-in the IPL legend Robin Uthappa, who is expected to be an integral part of their set-up. Over the years, the 34-year-old has led the KKR batting with aggression at the top of the order but has lost his sharpness for the past couple of years.
Being the most experienced batsman in the RR line-up, Uthappa should anchor their innings while Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson, Steve Smith, Ben Stokes, and others can be more aggressive and play their natural game.
IPL Career: Matches - 177, Runs - 4411, Avg. - 28.83, SR - 130.50, HS - 87
#7 Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bangalore)
With the lack of openers and quality Indian batsmen over the years, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) often relied on their skipper Virat Kohli to open the innings. But coming to IPL 2020, they have managed to rope in Aaron Finch and Josh Phillipe. The rise of Devdutt Padikkal too would help them settle the opening combination and Kohli might switch back to number 3.
With aggressive openers and AB de Villiers, Moeen Ali, and Shivam Dube as the batsmen to follow, the onus will be on the Indian captain to hold his end and guide the rest of the batsman to help them plan in run chases reach competitive totals while batting first.
IPL Career: Matches - 177, Runs - 5412, Avg. - 37.84, SR - 131.61, HS - 113
#8 Kane Williamson (Sunrisers Hyderabad)
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) have managed to form the most threatening opening pair in the IPL with David Warner and Jonny Bairstow on their side. Their skipper Kane Williamson is most likely to bat at 3, who often moved at the top in absence of the regular openers.
SRH has quality Indian batsmen in Manish Pandey and Vijay Shankar to follow the top 3 and hence makes it important for the New Zealand cricketer to keep one end solid and switch gears according to the demand.
IPL Career: Matches - 41, Runs - 1302, Avg. - 38.29, SR - 135.06, HS - 89
Also read: IPL 2020 | Strengths and weaknesses of each franchise
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