IPL 2020 Prediction: Opening pair for each franchise

Opening the batting is a specialist’s job, and, more so in the shortest version of the game. As IPL 2020 draws near, there are some settled opening batsmen while others are exciting.

IPL 2020 Prediction: Opening pairs

Let’s take a look at what we think each IPL 2020 squad‘s opening pairs would look like once the tournament begins:

Chennai Super Kings

Murali Vijay
Faf du Plessis

As the ‘Dad’s Army’ continues to march on without any considerable ‘fresh blooded’ reinforcements for a third consecutive season, many seem to question the number of battle wounds they can endure before finally calling it a day. With a significant number of there soldiers already having crossed the threshold of 30 at the time of recruitment back in 2018, roping them in for yet another draining war can prove to be a questionable tactic employed by their in-chiefs. And yet, the fast-flowing years seem to have no effect on the Super Kings evergreen platoons. They seem readier than ever for another gruesome battle, but if there is something that can be called a chink in there otherwise impregnable armour, it has to be their first rank.
The Chennai side suffered a tremendous blow when Suresh Raina decided to opt-out of the IPL for a personal reason. Having lost their backbone, the side from Tamil Nadu must tweak its batting order, if it wishes to continue its stellar run in the IPL. Ambati Rayudu, who would have previously been slated to open things up with Faf du Plessis, must now drop down to number three and play the pivotal anchor’s role that Raina has played ever so perfectly in the years gone by. This, therefore, creates a critical vacancy up top, and Chennai seems to have found just the right person for it. A great player of spin, CSK veteran Murali Vijay seems to be the ideal replacement for Rayudu and must play upfront along with du Plessis to maintain the balance of the side.

Delhi Capitals

Shikhar Dhawan
Ajinkya Rahane

If there is one batting line up that even the greatest cricket team in the world would envy, it has to be that of the Delhi Capitals. Be it homegrown batsmen or talents roped in from abroad, seasoned campaigners or exuberant youngsters, the side from the national capital checks every box in the list. They say a problem of plenty is a good problem to have but the Capitals have beefed their batting up to such an extent that even that saying seems to have been deemed incorrect. Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Rishabh Pant, Prithvi Shaw, Shreyas Iyer, Shimron Hetmyer Alex Carey, sigh the list doesn’t seem to end. The fact that English opener Jason Roy was also part of the incredibly “conservative” batting line is simply staggering. So, who makes it into the final eleven? Shikhar Dhawan- has to start. Ajinkya Rahane -has to start. Rishabh Pant- has to start. Shreyas Iyer – has to start. Where does Prithvi Shaw fit in? What if he doesn’t? It wouldn’t surprise one if Shaw is benched for the first couple of games and the two senior national team players get a hit. They seem to be the perfect pair to provide an ideal base for the likes of Pant, Iyer and Hetmyer to launch an attack at the opposition as the innings progresses.

Kings XI Punjab

KL Rahul
Mayank Agarwal

Once again, Kings XI Punjab starts with one of the strongest looking teams of the season on paper. The only hard choice that Punjab’s think tank will have to make will be whether to play ‘Universe Boss’ Chris Gayle or not. Team captain KL Rahul walks into the side as opener number one. Pooran and Maxwell bolster the middle order and provide the firepower required to finish games. Afghan tweaker Mujeeb-ur-Rahman also seems to be an easy pick, as most of Punjab’s spin department is based around him after the departure of Ravi Ashwin to the Delhi Capitals. Sheldon Cottrell is a necessity for the side from Punjab, for he along with Mohammad Shami shall handle the pace department. Therefore, Gayle seems to be left out, especially because of the existence of Mayank Agarwal, whose career was just about to take off before the unfortunate coronavirus pandemic.

Kolkata Knight Riders

Sunil Narine
Shubhman Gill

If you were to tell me eight years ago that Sunil Narine would open the batting for KKR, I would have laughed my heart out. But events have taken such turns that Narine is the first name that comes to mind when one mentions Kolkata openers. The way Narine hits the ball is just mind-boggling. There’s no rhythm to it, no flow. It’s just random swings of the bat that somehow seem to self-coordinate at the right time. And the number of times they self-coordinate is just unfathomable.
And Sunil Narine finds a perfect partner in Shubhman Gill. The duo is like chalk and cheese- one totally ruthless the other elegant but equally brutal.

Mumbai Indians

Rohit Sharma
Q de Kock

Arguably one of the most balanced teams of the season on paper, the Mumbai Indians seem to have it all- unrelenting finishers, crafty spinners, dexterous quicks and their top order is no different. Rohit Sharma and Quinton de Kock, two of the greatest white ball batsmen going around right now, along with Chris Lynn as a backup. Talk about firepower up front!

Rajasthan Royals

Jos Buttler
Yashasvi Jaiswal

The pink brigade from the pink city has made some pretty big decisions pre-season. They let go of one of the pillars of their batting department and got two raw leg spinners for him. Ajinkya Rahane left along with him-a gaping void at the top of the order, which was filled by the arrival of emerging talent and a veteran nearing the evening of his career. India u-19 star Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was the talk of the town- or the auction table, rather. He was roped in by the team from Jaipur for little less than two and a half crores. On the other hand, the Royals think tank also managed to bid the highest for Robbie Uthappa. It would be really interesting to see who RR’s management thinks best fits the role of Buttler’s accomplice at the top of the order, though young Jaiswal seems to be an early favourite.

Royal Challengers Bangalore

Aaron Finch
Devdutt Paddikal

Aaron Finch will, without a doubt, go down in the record books as a T20I great. The 33-year-old Victorian has amassed a staggering total of 2075 runs in his 63-match long career averaging about 38 per game. He is already among the top 10 T20I run-getters of all time and also holds the record highest individual score in a T20 international (172 against Zimbabwe in 2018). All these jaw-dropping records, he must be an IPL legend, right? Wrong. In his 75-match long IPL career, the Australian captain has managed to accumulate a meagre 1737 runs at 25.93 per match. Now that he has shifted camp and belongs to the side from Bangalore, it would be interesting to see how he fares amongst the likes of Kohli and de Villiers. With the additional responsibility of being the senior opener on his shoulders, only time will tell how he manages to cope up and deliver the goods for the Royal Challengers.
Finch is most likely to be paired with local Kannadiga Devdutt Padikkal, provided that AB de Villiers keeps wickets, which he most likely will. Padikkal was signed by the RCB at the back of a stellar run in last year’s Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. He was, in fact, the tournament’s highest run-getter putting 580 runs next to his name in only 12 games, striking at 176.

Sunrisers Hyderabad

David Warner
Jonny Bairstow

Arguably the strongest opening pair in the tournament, Warner and Bairstow put on a show the last time they wore orange colours. The IPL is nothing new to David Warner, and the Australian southpaw is, in fact, the league’s most successful overseas batsman. He was joined by Englishman Jonny Bairstow last year, and the two have not looked back ever since. On their day, they possess the ability to strike fear in the minds of any bowling unit and are going to be the pair to watch out for once the tournament actually commences.

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