IPL 2021: Strength and weakness of each team ahead of UAE leg

The IPL 2021 that had got postponed because of the second Covid-19 wave in India, is now all set to resume from September 19th. Despite the tournament reaching its halfway stage, again all of the eight IPL franchises are in strong contention for the potential playoffs spots, especially with the top four teams enjoying a considerable lead. 

While earlier there were also a lot of doldrums regarding the availability of some key overseas players, but even that has got resolved mainly because of the cancellation of some international tours and fixtures. 

Hence, with the tournament now yet again dwelling itself, let’s analyze each team’s strengths and weaknesses. 

1. Chennai Super Kings

Strength- Prolonged batting order, 5-6 Bowling options 

By carrying a tally of 10 points from their first seven games, CSK seems to have found its natural zeal in IPL 2021. Under the captaincy of MS Dhoni, they are again at the top of the table (2nd position) and are comfortably expected to qualify for the playoffs. Now in their journey of five solid wins, the yellow army’s main strength has become its power-packed batting wherein there are batters till No. 10 position.

Especially with players like Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran and Dwayne Bravo forming a strong core in the lower batting order, the void of captain Dhoni’s reasonable batting also gets covered. And with players like Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur also being the regulars, CSK’s overall lower-order batting seems to be a never-ending profusion. 

With plenty of all-rounders, CSK’s overall bowling is also significantly bolstered. To cover up for the quota of the fifth bowling option, captain Dhoni has both Moeen Ali and Ravindra Jadeja as two wicket-taking spinners accompanying their main four frontline bowlers. Hence, by bagging a plethora of quality all-rounders during the 2021 auction, the CSK franchise has brimmed their squad with a lot of depth and resources. 

Weakness- Struggles with their premier overseas pacer 

However, unfortunately, with regards to their overall bowling, the yellow army has endured its fair share of struggles in IPL 2021. The franchise is yet to find its premier overseas pacer as both Dwayne Bravo and Lungi Ngidi have been rusty in the first leg of the tournament. Especially with regards to Ngidi’s nippy bowling, the South African pacer looked to be adding a different variety in CSK’s crop of medium pacers but unfortunately, he has leaked runs at an economy of over 10.

Even the veteran Dwayne Bravo, who has oodles of experience, has reasonably struggled when it comes to picking wickets. Apart from these two spearheads, even Shardul Thakur has been ordinary especially with his economy also surpassing over 10. Hence, while the franchise’s overall batting has been piling match-winning totals, the overall bowling department has been substandard with their performances.