Click it and Unblock the Notifications
Mumbai Indians break UAE jinx
The defending champions arrived at UAE shores with the bad memories of their defeats from IPL 2014. During the IPL 2014, which was also held in the UAE for a few weeks due to the Lok Sabha polls, Mumbai Indians - who were the defending champions back then as well - ended up losing all their five games.
However, this time around, the Rohit Sharma-led side - who are also known as late bloomers - broke that jinx and started winning games in the early stage of the league. Mumbai have won 5 of their 7 games so far and are poised to qualify to the play-offs.
MI have 10 points and with four more wins in the next seven games they will comfortably be in play-offs stage.
Chennai Super Kings' slump
MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings have been one of the most consistent teams in the league. The only team in the history of the league to have made it to the playoffs every season is languishing at the bottom of the points table at the halfway stage.
CSK started their campaign on winning note when they defeated Mumbai in the opening game but their form slumped as they went on losing 5 of their 8 games. CSK are placed sixth in the points table and they will have to winning at least six games to stay in the hunt.
Big stars waiting for a chance
IPL has always been a grand affair as the world's top players have enthralled the fans with their brilliant on-field performances. However, IPL 2020 witnessed something different when franchises decided not to field their star players in their Playing XIs.
CSK's star spinner Imran Tahir has not yet made a single appearance in the tournament so far. The right-arm leg-spinner was the Purple Cap winner in the previous edition as he was the leading wicket-taker in the league. Similarly, New Zealand spinner Mitchell Santner is also waiting for his turn in IPL 2020.
Kings XI Punjab's star opener Chris Gayle is also warming up the benches in the dugout as coach KL Rahul and head coach Anil Kumble hasn't yet given him a place in the Playing XI.
Chris Lynn is another player who has been waiting in the dug-out as Mumbai Indians are yet to hand him over his debut cap for the franchise.
Kuldeep Yadav has been one of the key spinners for India. However, he lost his place in Kolkata Knight Riders' side in this edition.
Rahul - Naam to Suna Hoga
This edition of IPL has witnessed some extraordinary performances from players named 'Rahul'. Be it KL Rahul or Rahul Tewatia or Rahul Tripathi or Rahul Chahar, the players of this name have produced some stellar performances in the tournament.
KL Rahul slammed a brilliant century against Royal Challengers Bangalore and continues to be the leading run-scorer in the tournament.
Rahul Tewatia, on the other hand, has been a revelation of the season. The Rajasthan Royals has impressed with his superlative performances with the bat, as well as, with the ball. Tewatia's knock of 53-off 31 deliveries against KXIP is one of the most memorable performances of the tournament. The right-handed middle-order batsman from Haryana backed himself well and tonked 5 sixes in Sheldon Cottrell's single over and snatched victory from the jaws of defeat. Tewatia continues his purple patch and has been consistently delivering for his team.
Rahul Tripathi had to wait for a long time to make his debut for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) but left a mark in the first two games he played for his team. In his second match of the tournament, Tripathi slammed a brilliant knock of 81 off 51 deliveries against Chennai Super Kings while opening the innings for his team.
Rahul Chahar, the Mumbai Indians' leg-spinner, has also performed well for this franchise. Chahar has picked up 7 wickets in as many games and he has also been in good fielder.
Fake noise in the stadium
The fake noise of the crowd has been one of the many firsts in the tournament as players confined themselves to the bio-secure bubble. With no crowds in attendance for the matches, the organisers decided to give a friendly atmosphere to the players during the matches.
The stadium might be empty but it continues to give the players a feel with the fake chants of the crowd.
Continue with Google