The second season of the IPL is finally here and what a start it has been to the tournament! After a splendid opening ceremony, we saw the two finalists from last year being beaten comprehensively. The matches so far have been a pleasant change from last year where the sole aim of the teams was to outhit each other. We have already seen that that strategy won’t work this year. The conditions seem much more helpful for the bowlers, especially the seamers. And batsmen will actually need to focus on playing themselves in, not missing out on the bad deliveries and playing some daring and innovative shots once set. It will, rather happily, not be a situation of step on front foot and swing the bat.

What this means for the teams

In this edition, the teams that will succeed will be the ones whose seamers can bowl tight in the initial overs – and garner wickets for the spinners bowling later. More importantly, the teams in the final four will be the ones that have their batsmen scoring the most singles and twos in the process of getting set. While we will see the occasional 100 from 40 balls knock, we will more likely see the 60 from 40 balls with 30 runs in boundary hits. And as this becomes the key, the teams that can save the singles and cut down the twos will be more successful. We will see a twenty20 tournament that will be a throwback to the era of one day cricket before WC96. Where the ‘Dean Jones’ kind of batsman is preferred to the ‘Kris Srikkanth’ kind. Finally, as most people point out, the performance of the senior cricketers in the teams will be critical especially in the first half of the tournament. Based on all this and the way the next few matches go, where do the teams stand? Who do we think are the favourites ? Watch this space for more…

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After previewing the four semifinalists, it is now the turn of possibly the most popular team in the Indian Premier Leaugue – the Mumbai Indians.

Team: Mumbai Indians

Captain: Sachin Tendulkar

Coach/Mentor: Shaun Pollock

Trump Card: Zaheer Khan

X-Factor: Lasitha Malinga

Whats changed from last season: More additions than losses and some really positive ones too – JP Duminy, Mohammed Ashraful and Kyle Mills made their way in during the auction but the best purchase was made off season via the signing of Zaheer Khan. Shikhar Dhawan also makes his way into the team.

In 2008, the Indian Premier League’s most expensive team came absolutely undone during the auction through some uninspired signings. This coupled with talisman’s Sachin Tendulkar’s absence resulted in a number of poor performances. Incredibly, the team picked itself up after the infamous slapgate incident involving captain Harbhajan Singh. The inspiration didn’t come from expensive signings but from local players like Abishek Nayar. It was strange to watch the Mumbai Indians not make the semifinals considering they always seem to dominate Indian domestic cricket. This season, some shrewd signings and no fitness problems should ensure that Mumbai start better and make their way into the semifinals.

The Batting:

Sachin Tendulkar will of course be the talisman – any doubts that he might find the going tough in the IPL were put to rest last month during that incredible 160 against the Kiwis. He is fit and his presence in the Mumbai Indians’ squad will also probably mean that they will be the neutral Indian fan’s favourite. I think this format of the game will quite suit the new Tendulkar of the old. Opening with him will be Old Lankan war horse – Jayasurya; the two proving that 20-20 is not necessarily a young man’s game. At 3 should be Shikar Dhawan, signed from Delhi (for Ashish Nehra!) and following will be JP Duminy. Duminy looks a class signing but its always a risk signing a young player for a million bucks on the back of one brilliant season (read Kolkotta and Ishant Sharma). Mohammed Ashraful is one of those players who looks spectacular when he comes off but is frustratingly inconsistent. Dwayne Bravo, Ryan Mclaren and Graham Napier will all perform the roles of the all rounders. Abishek Nayar, Ajinkya Rane, Pinal Shah will all provide the local flavour with Nayar hoping to build on his performances from last season.

The Bowling:

As mentioned earlier, the big signing is that of Zaheer Khan (an exchange with Bangalore for Robin Uthappa), Zaheer is arguably in the running for the best fast bowler in the World right now. Clearly, he is enjoying the responsiblity and the Mumbai Indians will be looking to him to lead the charge. He will get good support from Kyle Mills and Lasitha Malinga. Malinga should be the real X-factor here, and if he gets into rhythm quickly, a number of Indian batsman might struggle to pick him.

Also, a certain starter will be the new kid on the block Dhawal Kulkarni – the highest wicket taker in the recently concluded domestic season. He was on that plane to New Zealand but didn’t get a match on the tour. If Dilhara Fernando plays and bowls well, it will be a pure bonus as he gets tonked around in every form of the game. Harbhajan Singh will be looking to make amends for his stupidity in last season and his recent performances in New Zealand augur well for Mumbai. Overall, the Mumbai Indians have an excellent bowling line up and if Zaheer and Harbhajan come good, it’s going to be tough going for the opposition.

The squad:

The Indians: Sachin Tendulkar, Shikhar Dhawan, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan, Dhawal Kulkarni, Yogesh Takawale (wk), Chetanya Nanda. Abhishek Nayar, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohan Raje, Jaydev Shah, Pinal Shah, Rahil Shaikh, Saurabh Tiwary

The Foreigners: Dwayne Bravo, Jean-Paul Duminy, Dilhara Fernando, Sanath Jayasuriya, Ryan McLaren, Lasith Malinga, Kyle Mills, Mohammad Ashraful, Graham Napier, Luke Ronchi (wk)

Picture Courtesy: NDTV

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