IPL 2018: Qualification scenarios for all 5 teams in contention for playoffs
The 2018 IPL has reached its business end as the race for the top-4 has become very exciting. Sunrisers Hyderabad, with 18 points, and Chennai Super Kings, with 16 points, have already qualified for the playoffs and Delhi Daredevils are already out of contention for the top-4.
Kings XI Punjab, Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals, with 12 points each, and Mumbai Indians and Royal Challengers Bangalore, with 10 points each are still in contention for a place in the playoffs. With some of the teams in contention taking on each other in the coming days, the race for the top-4 will be very interesting.
You can find the IPL points table here. Let us take a look at the possible scenarios for all these five teams and what should happen for them to qualify for the playoffs.
Kings XI Punjab
After their first matches, Kings XI Punjab were the favourites not only to qualify but also to finish in the top-2. They got a one-week break and that completely changed their momentum as they managed to win just one of their next six matches putting their qualification in jeopardy.
Scenario 1: They will qualify in spite of their NRR if they win both their matches as they will be having 16 points. Among the teams in contention, either KKR or RR can get a maximum of 16 while the other two teams cannot go beyond 14 points.
Scenario 2: If they lose one game, they will be looking to win the other one by a huge margin as their NRR is the least among the five teams in contention.