IPL 2018: Performance Analysis of teams unable to make the playoffs
After 56 matches of intense T20 cricket across 43 days, four teams have progressed to the playoffs, in arguably the most closely contested IPL season ever with the fourth playoff spot confirmed only by the 35th over of the last match of the league.
Sunrisers Hyderabad, who were among the pre-season favourites, lived up to the expectations by topping the points table while Chennai Super Kings maintained their record of qualifying for the playoffs in every season of their participation.
Kolkata Knight Riders defied all odds to overcome widespread post-auction criticism as they stunned cricket pundits by clearing the league stage through consistent team efforts.
Rajasthan Royals put up spirited performances to earn a well-deserved playoff berth on their return to the IPL, as they pipped Mumbai Indians, Royal Challengers Bangalore and Kings XI Punjab on the final weekend of the league.
As for Delhi Daredevils, it almost seems as if their story is in loop mode with just the characters changing every season.
Let us look at the reasons why MI, RCB, KXIP and DD failed to qualify for the playoffs.
#1 Mumbai Indians (12 points, 5th place)
The good
MI's ability to set up winning situations consistently throughout the tournament. Suryakumar Yadav, Evin Lewis and Ishan Kishan provided blazing starts to lay the platform for big totals batting first.
Despite ending up with a number of below-par totals, the fact that their bowlers kept MI in the game is another huge positive.
Mitchell McClenaghan picked wickets with the new ball, Mayank Markande offered control in the middle overs and Jasprit Bumrah was at his lethal best in the death overs.
Hardik Pandya's ability to break partnerships also proved to be an important aspect for the team balance.
The bad
Inability to capitalize on solid platforms and the tendency of the middle order to crumble under pressure.
Rohit Sharma had his personal worst IPL, scoring a mere 286 runs, Kieron Pollard had a poor season apart from a half-century late in the season and the Pandya brothers had a mixed season with the bat.
Mumbai Indians lost as many as six matches in the last over, and that showed the failure of their finishers with the bat and lack of support for Bumrah at the death with the ball.
Rookie leg-spinner Markande started the tournament with a bang but faded away towards the end as MI also struggled to pick wickets in the middle overs in the absence of an experienced spinner.
Overall, MI repeated the same mistakes too many times and could not capitalize on match-winning situations.
Star performers
Yadav grabbed the opportunity of opening the batting with both hands, scoring 512 runs as the leading run-scorer for MI.
The most impressive aspects of his batting, which had eluded him in his stint with KKR, were his shot selection and consistent performances.
Hardik Pandya with 18 wickets was the leading wicket-taker for MI and he provided crucial breakthroughs almost every time Rohit threw him the ball: be it the powerplay, the middle overs or even at the death.
He also played some important innings with the bat in the second half of the season and was one of the protagonists of MI's late surge in the tournament.
The failing stars
Captain Sharma batted in the middle order throughout the tournament, in order to provide a "balance" to the team that only he and the Mumbai Indians management seem to understand.
One of the greatest white-ball openers in the modern game, he faced barely half the balls he should have, and as a result managed a meagre 286 runs in his worst IPL season. The result is for everyone to see.
Pollard had a forgettable season with the bat, scoring 133 runs from 8 innings with a solitary half-century which he scored on his return to the side after being dropped.
Such is the talent in T20 cricket worldwide that MI have strong reasons to consider a long-term replacement for their ageing talisman.
What they missed
The sheer pace and aggression when bowling with the new ball, and fair to say they had it covered in the Aussie duo of Pat Cummins and Jason Behrendorff who both missed the season due to injuries. Cummins would have also provided crucial support to Bumrah at the death.
The experience of Harbhajan Singh in the middle overs. They came out of the auction without a proper replacement for the Turbanator and though Markande impressed in the first two matches, oppositions worked him out soon and as a result, MI failed to make an impact in the middle overs.
The future
One can expect Pollard to make way for a younger overseas middle-order batsman. Lewis (382 runs) had a decent season and MI should persist with him for at least one more year.
If Cummins and Behrendorff are fit and available, they will solve the fast-bowling issues and Mustafizur Rahman is expected to be released after a poor season filling in for them.
MI may also look at an international spinner, and to accommodate the same, they will look for a good Indian seamer to support Bumrah.