Indian Premier League Team-by-Team Guide: Delhi's chance may have gone

Delhi Capitals 5.04/1

Batting boundary % rank: 10
Game changer Shardul Thakur
Game clogger: David Warner

Strengths: They look a well-balanced XI, don't they? And the squad has depth with good bowling cover for Anrich Nortje in the shape of Mustafizur Rahman. Likewise Tim Seifert cam come in and hit in any position if they lose an overseas batter.

Weaknesses: Despite the well-assembled unit, it's hard not to reckon Delhi have gone back in time. The returning David Warner is on the wane and there's a sense that they are an inferior version of the team which should have won at least one title in the last couple of years. The wait for a first win might go on.

Possible XI: Shaw (21.89), Warner (14.80), M Marsh (17.72), Pant (14.67), Sarfaraz (15.32), R Powell (13.99), Axar, Thakur, Kuldeep, Khaleel, Nortje

Squad: Rishabh Pant, Prithvi Shaw, Axar Patel, Anrich Nortje, David Warner, Mitch Marsh, Shardul Thakur, Mustafizur Rahman, Kuldeep Yadav, Ashwin Hebbar, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, KS Bharat, Sarfaraz Khan, Mandeep Singh, Syed Khaleel Ahmed, Chetan Sakariya, Lalit Yadav, Ripal Patel, Yash Dhull, Rovman Powell, Pravin Dubey, Lungi Ngidi, Tim Seifert, Vicky Ostwal

Mumbai Indians 5.59/2

Batting boundary % rank: 3
Game changer Tim David
Game clogger: Anmolpreet Singh

Strengths: Mumbai failed to make the play-offs last term. They've reacted by assembling potentially their best-ever batting line-up. Tim David is a great signing, likewise Daniel Sams who's an improved Nathan Coulter-Nile. It seems inconceivable that they don't make the top four.

Weaknesses: There are two weaknesses. Anmolpreet Singh and Tilak Varma, who we have down in our possible XI, are completely unproven. If they don't play, two other thrusters will have to. It's unusual for such a storied franchise to step into the unknown like that.

Possible XI: Rohit (16.64), Ishan (18.39), Yadav (22.26), Anmolpreet Singh (13.16), Pollard (23.47), David (21.3), Sams, Tilak Varma, Mills, Markande, Bumrah

Squad: Rohit Sharma, Jasprit Bumrah, Suryakumar Yadav, Kieron Pollard, Ishan Kishan, Dewald Brevis, Basil Thampi, Murugan Ashwin, Jaydev Unadkat, Mayank Markande, N Tilak Varma, Sanjay Yadav, Jofra Archer, Daniel Sams, Tymal Mills, Tim David, Riley Meredith, Mohammad Arshad Khan, Anmolpreet Singh, Ramandeep Singh, Rahul Buddhi, Hrithik Shokeen, Arjun Tendulkar, Aryan Juyal, Fabian Allen

Kolkata Knight Riders 6.05/1

Batting boundary % rank: 1
Game changer Venkatesh Iyer
Game clogger: Vijay Shankar

Strengths: This lot are the intent merchants. Coach Brendon McCullum will insist on recklessness with the bat and it's a shrewd strategy with Pat Cummins at number eight. They look a dangerous unit.

Weaknesses: They may well need to be quick with the bat because they could be pricey in the field. Sunil Narine opening again looks a must after they fudged the auction somewhat. Andre Russell's fitness is again an issue.

Possible XI: V Iyer (20), Narine (23.22), Rana (20.39), S Iyer (11.49), Russell (25.3), Billings (17.64), Nabi, Cummins, Mavi, Umesh Yadav, Chakarathy

Squad: Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Varun Chakravarthy, Venkatesh Iyer, Pat Cummins, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer, Shivam Mavi, Sheldon Jackson, Ajinkya Rahane, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Rasikh Dar, Baba Indrajith, Chamika Karunaratne, Abhijeet Tomar, Pratham Singh, Ashok Sharma, Sam Billings, Aaron Finch, Tim Southee, Ramesh Kumar, Mohammad Nabi, Umesh Yadav

Royal Challengers Bangalore 6.5011/2

Batting boundary % rank: 4
Game changer Wanindu Hasaranga
Game clogger: Virat Kohli

Strengths: Faf Du Plessis taking over as skip from Virat Kohli is a major boost. Tactically they should be sharper. Mentally, too. Pairing top wicket-taker Harshal Patel and Josh Hazlewood looks like a masterstroke. Wanindu Hasaranga, if he hasn't already, can confirm superstar status with bat and ball.

Weaknesses: Look at Kohli's boundary percentage in the number three slot. It's the worst return of any three. And only two other batters in our projected line-ups have a worst rate. It is arguable that RCB will never win a title until they get rid.

Possible XI: Du Plessis (17.31), Anuj Rawat (19.42), Kohli (11.89), Maxwell (18.45), Karthik (18.33), Hasaranga (28.68), Shahbaz, Harshal Patel, Lomror, Siraj, Hazlewood.
Squad: Virat Kohli, Glenn Maxwell, Mohammed Siraj, Faf du Plessis, Harshal Patel, Wanindu Hasaranga, Dinesh Karthik, Anuj Rawat, Shahbaz Ahamad, Akash Deep, Josh Hazlewood, Mahipal Lomror, Finn Allen, Sherfane Rutherford, Jason Behrendorff, Suyash Prabhudessai, Chama Milind, Aneeshwar Gautam, Karn Sharma, Siddharth Kaul, Luvnith Sisodia, David Willey

Chennai Super Kings 7.06/1

Batting boundary % rank: 5
Game changer Ravi Jadeja
Game clogger: MS Dhoni

Strengths: The champs look in decent fettle again. And you could pick three or four for the game-changer slot. Moeen? Ruturaj? Rayudu?

Weaknesses: Dhoni has been slowing them down for a while now. Don't be fooled by the myth of his captaincy masterstrokes, either. More significant is the loss of pacer Deepak Chahar. He is injured and is likely to miss the whole shebang. There's few solid replacements it would seem.

Possible XI: Gaikwad (18.22), Conway (17.47), Moeen (18.84), Rayudu (17.30), Jadeja (20.96), Bravo (16.7), Dube, Dhoni, Milne, K Asif, Deshpande

Squad: Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni, Moeen Ali, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Dwayne Bravo, Ambati Rayudu, Deepak Chahar, KM Asif, Tushar Deshpande, Shivam Dube, Maheesh Theekshana, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Simarjeet Singh, Devon Conway, Dwaine Pretorius, Mitchell Santner, Adam Milne, Subhranshu Senapati, Mukesh Choudhary, Prashant Solanki, C Hari Nishaanth, N Jagadeesan, Chris Jordan, K Bhagath Varma

Punjab Kings 7.06/1

Batting boundary % rank: 3
Game changer Rahul Chahar
Game clogger: Odean Smith

Strengths: Punjab have assembled one of the best batting line-ups and surely they will make their first appearance in the play-offs. It is the best-balanced squad we can recall. Kagiso Rabada apart there are few star names with the ball but it's a capable line-up. To that end, Rahul Chahar is a good pick-up.

Weaknesses: West Indies' talented Odean Smith is a harsh pick as game clogger. It's purely because there's a lot of pressure on him to perform in the all-rounder role. Can he live up to the hype as the new Dre Russ? It's harsh to expect him to perform such a pivotal role so early in his IPL career.

Possible XI: Dhawan (17.47), Agarwal (19.40), Bairstow (20.12), Livingstone (18.13), Shahrukh (21.1), Odean Smith (18.37), Harpreet, Sandeep Sharma, Rahul Chahar, Rabada, Arshdeep

Squad: Mayank Agarwal, Arshdeep Singh, Shikhar Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Jonny Bairstow, Rahul Chahar, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Prabhsimran Singh, Jitesh Sharma, Ishan Porel, Liam Livingstone, Odean Smith, Sandeep Sharma, Raj Bawa, Rishi Dhawan, Prerak Mankad, Vaibhav Arora, Writtick Chatterjee, Baltej Dhanda, Ansh Patel, Nathan Ellis, Atharva Taide, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Benny Howell

Rajasthan Royals 8.07/1

Batting boundary % rank: 7
Game changer Yas Jaiswal
Game clogger: Shimron Hetmyer

Strengths: The Royals have done a good job in the auction with the bowling group. They have covered every base. Trent Boult and Prasidh Krishna are wicket-takers while Ravi Ashwin and Yuz Chahal (above) can keep it tight. Strong.

Weaknesses: The pay-off are a few holes with the batting. A lot rests on Shimron hetmyer bringing his best game. Not guaranteed. He can't get in the West Indies teams. Jos Buttler might have to bat at three, too with Dav Padikal better suited to the opening slot with the potentially dangerous Yas Jaiswal.

Possible XI: Buttler (19.35), Jaiswal (20), Paddikal (16.8), Samson (18.74), Hetmyer (16.14), Parag (14.82), Neesham/Mitchell/Coulter-Nile, Ravi Ashwin, Boult, Yuz Chahal, P Krishna

Squad: Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, R Ashwin, Trent Boult, Shimron Hetmyer, Devdutt Padikkal, Prasidh Krishna, Yuzvendra Chahal, Riyan Parag, KC Cariappa, Navdeep Saini, Obed McCoy, Anunay Singh, Kuldeep Sen, Karun Nair, Dhruv Jurel, Tejas Baroka, Kuldip Yadav, Shubham Garhwal, Jimmy Neesham, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Rassie van der Dussen, Daryl Mitchell

Lucknow 10.09/1

Batting boundary % rank: 8
Game changer Marcus Stoinis
Game clogger: Manish Pandey

Strengths: Rahul and De Kock have the potential to dovetail perfectly in the opening slot, giving them a great chance for late assaults. That's what makes Stoinis so important

Weaknesses: Given that strong top two it's surprising they've wasted a wager on another opener, Evin Lewis. That suggests muddled thinking. Likewise the injury to Mark Wood. Who comes in for him? Dushmantha Chameera is solid but there's not much depth.

Possible XI: Rahul (16.41), De Kock (16.94), Pandey (13.61), Stoinis (19.63), Deepak Hooda (18.43), Krunal (15.62), Holder, Gowtham, Chameera, Bishnoi, Avesh

Squad: KL Rahul, Marcus Stoinis, Ravi Bishnoi, Quinton de Kock, Manish Pandey, Jason Holder, Deepak Hooda, Krunal Pandya, Mark Wood, Avesh Khan, Ankit Rajpoot, K Gowtham, Dushmanta Chameera, Shahbaz Nadeem, Manan Vohra, Mohsin Khan, Ayush Badoni, Kyle Mayers, Karan Sharma, Evin Lewis, Mayank Yadav, B Sai Sudharsan

Gujarat 11.010/1

Batting boundary % rank: 6
Game changer Rahmanullah Gurbaz
Game clogger: Vijay Shankar

Strengths: They've got stronger since the mega auction, which is a blessing. Gurbaz is an upgrade on Jason Roy. They needed firepower up front after spending big on Hardik and Rashid Khan. Those two will win them games on their own.

Weaknesses: Hatrdik and Rashid come at a price, meaning Vijay Shankar and Matthew Wade (or possibly David Miller) probably play at numbers three and four. It's a mess.

Possible XI: Gill (14.53), Gurbaz (25.3), Shankar (12.09), Wade (18.5), Hardik (20.45), Tewatia (15.9), Saha, Rashid Khan, Ferguson, Shami, Varun Aaron

Squad: Hardik Pandya, Shubman Gill, Rashid Khan, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Mohammad Shami, Lockie Ferguson, Abhinav Sadarangani, Rahul Tewatia, Noor Ahmad, R Sai Kishore, Dominic Drakes, Jayant Yadav, Viijay Shankar, Darshan Nalkande, Yash Dayal, Alzarri Joseph, Prandeep Sangwan, David Miller, Wriddhiman Saha, Matthew Wade, Gurkeerat Singh, Varun Aaron

Sunrisers Hyderabad 13.012/1

Batting boundary % rank: =10
Game changer Abdul Samad
Game clogger: Washington Sundar

Strengths: Err... Well, Natarajan is an ace death bowler so that's a positive. And he should form a decent partnership with Bhuv Kumar again. But much depends on Nic Pooran and Abdul Samad (time for a big season) firing with batting intent.

Weaknesses: They've lost Rashid Khan and one of the best IPL bowling units in history has completely broken up. The format has moved on, though and they've not moved with the hitting times. They are joint-bottom on boundary percentage rank.

Possible XI: Williamson (14.44), Tripathi (17.06), Pooran (19.78), Samad (18.15), Philips (18.74), Sundar (9.86), Shepherd, Bhuv Kumar, Gopal, Natarajan, Umran Malik

Squad: Kane Williamson, Abdul Samad, Umran Malik, Washington Sundar, Nicholas Pooran, T Natarajan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Priyam Garg, Rahul Tripathi, Abhishek Sharma, Kartik Tyagi, Shreyas Gopal, Jagadeesha Suchith, Aiden Markram, Marco Jansen, Romario Shepherd, Sean Abbott, R Samarth, Shashank Singh, Saurabh Dubey, Vishnu Vinod, Glenn Phillips, Fazalhaq Farooqi

*Boundary percentage last two years in domestic T20

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