In what truly has been one of the most keenly contested tournaments in IPL history, defending champions Mumbai Indians along with Delhi Capitals, Royal Challengers Bangalore & SunRisers Hyderabad square off in a bid for the ultimate crown
IPL 2020 playoff captains Rohit Sharma, Shreyas Iyer, Virat Kohli and David Warner. Pictures/ AFP
It’s been that kind of an IPL season, where even after an adrenalin-filled 56 matches in the league stage, it boiled down to the last match to decide which team would seal the fourth and final berth for the highly anticipated playoffs. Following more than a month of electrifying action where the pendulum wildly oscillated and fans witnessed edge-of-the-seat action, it goes down to the wire when defending champions Mumbai Indians launch a serious title defence against hot contenders Delhi Capitals as the playoffs for one of the most keenly contested IPL titles get underway with Qualifier 1 on November 5th (Thursday) at Dubai with Live action on the Star Sports Network & Disney+ Hotstar from 6 PM onwards. The race to the playoffs has been one of the most competitive ever in the history of the IPL.
Mumbai Indians, the first team to qualify for the playoffs, fumbled at the start of the tournament, but since have displayed and showcased what a complete and resolute team they are, despite, off late, in the absence of regular captain Rohit Sharma. With the most important games of the season just around the corner, the Paltans will be crossing their fingers and hoping for ‘The Hitman’ remains injury free.
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Delhi Capitals led by the youngest captains in the Dream11 IPL 2020 – Shreyas Iyer – grabbed everybody’s attention and for all the right reasons. In a terrific Super Over win against KXIP (on September 20th), DC went from strength to strength until they stumbled on few injury concerns that almost derailed their campaign. After facing a series of losses, Iyer astutely marshalled his brigade as the Capitals bounced in the all-important match against Royal Challengers Bangalore, their last fixture in the league stage. With an exquisite think-tank led by head coach Ricky Ponting, Delhi Capitals now target history – a bid to lay their hands on the IPL silverware.
For Royal Challengers Bangalore, it has been a season to cherish. With their bowling department coming good, which was a major concern in their previous seasons, Virat Kohli & Co. have made quite a statement specially after finishing at the bottom of the table last year. RCB, despite the loss to Delhi Capitals in their league fixture, also qualified for the Playoffs courtesy ending on a higher NRR than Kolkata Knight Riders.
SunRisers Hyderabad were in a whirlwind clash that possibly had the writing on the ball even before the first ball was bowled. Following the omission of Hardik Pandya, Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult from the Mumbai Indians squad, David Warner and Wriddhiman Saha struck unbeaten fifties as Sunrisers Hyderabad sealed the last playoffs berth after a crushing 10-wicket victory. The team’s campaign in IPL 2020 has seen seismic ups and downs. All eyes will be on the Eliminator in Abu Dhabi on November 6th (Friday) when Sunrisers Hyderabad will face Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Fans can continue watching edge of seat drama from the Dream11 IPL 2020 live and exclusive on Star Sports Network & Disney+ Hotstar VIP from 5th November at 6 PM
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