3 teams with the most difficult starting matches in IPL 2023 schedule

Last week, the schedule of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2023) was revealed by the organizers of the marquee tournament. The curtain-raiser will feature defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) taking on the four-time winners Chennai Super Kings (CSK) on March 31. The venue will be the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

The 2023 season also brings back the home-and-away format for the first time since 2019. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the last three editions were either played at overseas venues in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) or a few select grounds in India.

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Similar to the 2022 season, this year's IPL will also see the 10 teams divided into two groups. Group A includes Mumbai Indians (MI), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Rajasthan Royals (RR), and the Delhi Capitals (DC).

On the other hand, Group B includes CSK, GT, Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), Punjab Kings (PBKS), and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

With every team playing a total of 14 league-stage fixtures, each franchise will be hoping to get a steady headstart in the tournament. An ideal set of initial matches allows teams to gain an early upper hand on the points table and helps them build a prolific campaign later on.

However, some teams have been scheduled to start their IPL 2023 campaign with tougher matches than others. Here, we take a look at three such franchises that have some difficult fixtures to start off their IPL 2023 season.

#3 Punjab Kings (PBKS)

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The Punjab Kings are set for a new era, having replaced their captain and coach ahead of the 2023 season. Shikhar Dhawan and Trevor Bayliss will lead the proceedings for PBKS, who have struggled to breach the barrier to the playoffs in the recent past.

Despite the tremendous purchase of Sam Curran in the IPL 2023 mini-auction, they may face difficulties on their way once more. PBKS' first three fixtures will see them lock horns with KKR, RR, and SRH.

Interestingly, two of their first three matches will be away from home, with their campaign opener against KKR scheduled to be played in Mohali. Having two back-to-back away fixtures right in the early stages of a campaign might be somewhat tricky for the Punjab-based franchise.

#2 Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)

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For the third time running, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) managed to qualify for the knockout stages of IPL 2022. However, a defeat against Rajasthan in Qualifier 2 saw them end up being the third-best side in the previous year's competition.

This time around, the Bangalore-based franchise has an even more settled unit and will look to go all the way in search of their elusive first title.

Their initial fixtures, however, will pose a challenge to them. RCB will host the record five-time champions Mumbai Indians in their tournament opener before travelling to Kolkata to face KKR. Both MI and KKR have historically had an edge over RCB.

#1 Mumbai Indians (MI)

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Injury problems for Jofra Archer and Jasprit Bumrah have raised concerns for the Mumbai Indians' fans recently. It remains to be seen whether the two top-quality pacers will start the campaign for MI in IPL 2023.

The Blue and Gold franchise would certainly want their best XI to take the field as soon as possible, given their testing scheduling at the start of this year's IPL.

As mentioned earlier, MI will face RCB in their opening fixture. The match will be played at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on April 2. However, the next IPL 2023 encounter for the Rohit Sharma-led unit will be after a six-day break when they will be up against their arch-rivals CSK at home.

Another blockbuster of a clash will await MI as they are scheduled to travel to Delhi for their match against the Capitals on April 11.

MI have a history of starting off slowly, and that just might turn out to be the case once again in IPL 2023 as well.