5 clashes to look forward to in the first week of IPL

The 8th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) has finally gotten underway. Kolkata Knight Riders took on Mumbai Indians in the opening match of the season at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata. The home side won the match by 7 wickets thanks to Suryakumar Yadav, Morne Morkel and Gautam Gambhir.This IPL will feature some much-anticipated rivalries that have developed over the years and some new rivalries will also begin to emerge as the season goes on. And this is what makes the IPL unique and exciting. Two players might be of the same nationality and the best of mates while playing international cricket, but they give their best and don’t hold back when it comes to playing against each other in the IPL.So let’s take a look at some of the interesting face-offs which will be on display in the first week of the IPL:

#1 Chris Gayle (RCB) vs Sunil Narine (KKR)

Chris Gayle became the latest man to add his name to the 200-club in ODI cricket with a brilliant 215-run knock. The dangerous Jamaican is more than capable of demolishing opponents single-handedly on his day in all formats and Twenty20 is one format which he particularly excels in. Having allayed fears of injury earlier, Gayle will be set to unleash the power and smash the bowlers out of the park.

Sunil Narine is known for outfoxing batsmen by disguising his deliveries extremely well. He is known to keep an excellent economy rate even in Twenty20, where batsmen look to hit the ball out of the park on every occasion. He has had to readjust his bowling action after he missed the World Cup due to a suspect action and had to face a late test to be eligible to bowl in the IPL. However, despite all the negative publicity surrounding the spinner, he is the x-factor that Gautam Gambhir’s side possess.

In this battle of the international teammates, it will be interesting to see who gets the better of who. They both know the qualities of the other quite well and this will, possibly, be the most interesting contest in the first week of the tournament.