IPL 2020: 5 Players who might be axed from Playing XI in the upcoming matches

We are almost at the halfway through the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League and the current season has been quite entertaining up to now. With some thrilling last over finishes and two Super Over finishes, the on-going edition is providing a lot of entertainment to the fans.

All the teams were looking good with a perfect mix of Indian and foreign players in their squad and the team management were looking to develop a perfect combination of Playing XI that suits the conditions in UAE. Due to this reason, many star players were benched. Some players got chance in the Playing XI but they failed to perform for the team.

While some teams tasted early success with those combinations, teams like CSK, RR and KXIP had paid heavily due to their rusty and inconsistent performances by their unbalanced Playing XI. In this article, we will discuss some names of players, who might be dropped from the XI in the upcoming games.

Here is the list:

1. Glenn Maxwell (Kings XI Punjab)

One has to feel bad for the Punjab-based franchise as they lost some close encounters in this season already even after fighting hard. They are currently standing at the bottom of the points table with just one win in their 7 games but if things had gone right for them, they could’ve been with three or four wins after the first half of the season.

The team is totally relaying on their skipper and Mayank Agarwal as their middle order is looking fragile with none taking the responsibility of finishing the games. Glenn Maxwell, who was bought by the Punjab franchise before this season for a whopping 10.75 crore, has failed miserably, becoming a burden of the side in the ongoing season.

In 7 matches so far, Maxwell has scored 58 runs at an average of 14.50 and at a strike rate of 95.08. He has also bowled 7 overs and picked a wicket at an economy of 9.28. With the ‘Universal Boss’ Chris Gayle warming the bench, Glenn might be dropped from the Playing XI from the next week.

2. Shikhar Dhawan (Delhi Capitals)

The Delhi-based franchise is at the top position of the points table with 5 wins in their 6 encounters till now. The Capitals were looking good in all the departments but the form of their current opener Shikhar Dhawan might be a concern for the team.

Dhawan, who had a tremendous IPL last year, has failed glumly in the current season. In 6 matches this season, Dhawan has scored only 132 runs at an average of 22 and a strike rate of 122.22 with 35 being his top score.

Ajinkya Rahane, who has scored 3820 runs with a decent strike rate of 121.92 in the IPL, is warming the bench in the on-going season and is looking for an opportunity to showcase his skills for his new franchise. If Dhawan continues to underperform in the upcoming games, he might be dropped from the Playing XI, making way for Rahane.

3. Aaron Finch (Royal Challengers Bangalore)

The Australian limited-overs skipper is playing for his 7th franchise in the IPL as he was bought by the Bangalore-based franchise in the auction ahead of this season for INR 4.4 crore. He started this season decently with some good partnerships with Devdutt Padikkal at the top but failed to score runs in the last two games.

Although the Royal Challengers Bangalore have won 4 of their 6 matches, they will be looking to strengthen their top order to get some good starts with the bat. In 6 matches this season, Finch has scored only 124 runs at an average of 16.75 and a strike rate of 109.73.

With the specialist wicketkeeper-batsman Parthiv Patel and Josh Phillipe warming the bench, Finch might be dropped from the Playing XI, making a way for one among these two to feature in the team as a wicketkeeping batsman.

4. Chris Jordan (Kings XI Punjab)

Chris Jordan was bought by the Punjab based franchise in the auction ahead of this season for INR 50 lakhs to fill the shoes of an international death over specialist of the squad. But he failed to execute with the ball in the way they wanted him to execute.

In the three games he played for the franchise in the current season, Jordan was unable to pick a wicket and conceded 135 runs at an economy 12.27. He failed in all the three matches and was struggling to control the run-rate of the opposition in the death overs.

Kings XI Punjab, who are currently at the bottom of the points table, are looking to strengthen their death bowling attack and they can give a chance to Hardus Viljoen and Ishan Porel in the upcoming matches by dropping Jordan.

5. Mahipal Lomror (Rajasthan Royals)

The Rajasthan batting all-rounder came into the public limelight after U19 World Cup 2016 due to his effective left-arm spin but he was a pure batsman initially before converting into a batting all-rounder. He was bought by the Delhi Capitals ahead of the ninth season of the IPL but didn’t get a chance to play for the Delhi-based franchise.

Due to his consistent performance in the domestic circuit, he was bought by Rajasthan Royals ahead of 2018 IPL and got a couple of games under his belt.  Coming to this IPL, Rajasthan royals gave Lomror a chance as they want to strengthen their middle order and he grabbed the chance with both hands by scoring 47 runs in his first game of this season.

But in the next two games, he failed miserably by scoring just 12 runs at a strike rate of 109.53. Manan Vohra, who is warming the bench in the current season, can be given a chance ahead of Lomror in the upcoming matches.