IPL 2018: The Spectacle, The Action & How To Watch It

The 11th edition of the Indian Premier League begins in the backdrop of bans to the tournament’s premier Aussie draws, Steven Smith and David Warner, but don’t expect any less fi reworks.

- Tanmoy Mookherjee

It may be the first time in the history of the Indian Premier League that another country has dominated headlines in the lead-up to the T20 competition. The consequences of the ball-tampering controversy in the recently-concluded Test series between South Africa and Australia were far-reaching, with year-long bans handed out to Australia’s captain-vice-captain duo for their part in the event. A year that was set to be dominated by stories of the return of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals after serving their respective bans due to spot- xing related charges, Steven Smith and David Warner appear to have bitten away a considerable chunk of it.

The auctions preceding the tournament were an apt precursor to the event, with most franchises choosing to rejig their combinations after playing with settled teams in the seasons before. Mumbai Indians, the defending champions, seem to have kept the core of their squad intact, besides bolstering it with the arrival of exciting new faces. The three-time champions, however, let go of two of their premier bowlers, Lasith Malinga and Harbhajan Singh; the former taking up a mentorship role with the franchise, while the latter was snapped up by the returning Chennai Super Kings.

Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bangalore) and Rohit Sharma (Mumbai Indians) are the only two captains to have retained their positions besides MS Dhoni (CSK), who returns to the leadership role after playing under Steven Smith at Rising Pune Supergiant. For every other franchise, these are fresh steps towards a new era.

Among players that have been thrust into leadership roles for their franchise are R. Ashwin (Kings XI Punjab), Dinesh Karthik (Kolkata Knight Riders) and Ajinkya Rahane (Rajasthan Royals).