It is that time of the year when the hullaballoo of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2017
shoots up. The 10th edition of the cricket extravaganza and all the eight
franchises are gearing up to showcase the long list of impressive players they
boast of in their squad. With every season passing by, the eight teams battle
hard against each other with an underlying ambition to win the coveted IPL T20
title and be hailed as champions. The dynamic nature and fast-paced format of
T20 cricket makes it very difficult for any team to win on a consistent basis,
hence to expect an extended dominance by any team at the very top is too much
to ask for.
Indian players
missing:
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In what may be termed
as one of the major bummers of this year’s edition of IPL, a few key players
will miss the 10th season due to varied reasons. Team India’s new Mr Dependable
and Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) skipper,ViratKohli will be missing out
for the first few games of IPL 2017 due to a shoulder injury. In Kohli’s
absence, RCB will be led by the able AB de Villiers. Another of RCB’s key
player, KL Rahul will also be missing the entire season due to a shoulder
injury and is expected to fly out to London for a surgery. RavichandranAshwin
too has been ruled out of the entire IPL 2017 for Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS)
due to an injury. Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) are set to miss out on the services of
their former skipper Murali Vijay as the opener is nursing his injured
shoulder. RavindraJadeja will most probably miss out playing for Gujarat Lions
(GL) for the first three weeks of the IPL 2017. It is understood that Jadeja
will be taking much-needed rest before participating in the tournament. Indian
pacer UmeshYadav too will not be able to play for his side, Kolkata Knight
Riders (KKR) for the first three weeks of IPL 2017.
International players
missing:
Apart from the
above-mentioned Indian players, a few international players will also be seen
missing from the IPL 2017 action. Earlier in February, Pietersen made a
surprise announcement of not taking part in the IPL 2017 as a player for Rising
RPS. Mitchell Starc broke the news of not playing IPL 2017 a day before the
2017 player auction. JP Duminy pulled out of IPL 2017 in mid-March citing
personal reasons. Another Daredevils’ consistent performers since 2014, Quinton
De Kock has been ruled out of IPL 2017, due to a finger injury. Australian
player,Mitchell Marsh suffered a shoulder injury in the India-Australia Test
series, ruling him not only out of the series but also IPL 2017.
Past winners:
Post
its inception in 2008, IPL has seen multiple winners. Chennai Super Kings,
which was considered to be one of the most consistent teams till last year,
will not be a part of IPL 2017. Since the inception of the tournament, CSK has
made it to the title clash six times out of the nine editions played so far and
have won the tournament twice (2010,2011). Mumbai Indians too can proudly boast
of their track record in the IPL after being crowned champions twice – in 2013
and 2015. Kolkata Knight Riders who struggled in the first couple of seasons
have turned around their performance to emerge as a dominant side in the last
few seasons and win the title twice (2012, 2014). Apart from CSK, MI and KKR,
Rajasthan Royals (2008), Deccan Chargers (2009) and Sunrisers Hyderabad (2016)
have one IPL title in their kitty. It will be interesting to see who outshines
the remaining teams to lift the coveted title in the tenth edition of IPL.
