IPL 3 Is Wide Open

In the run up to IPL 3, some of the cricket world’s clever people told me that the tournament was too long and wouldn’t be able to sustain its frenzied fan following for 60 matches over 45 days. Knowing they were probably right, but begging to differ, I said it would only suffer a lull in interest over then week that leads up to the semi finals, where there are lots of dead rubber games.

But none of us was right. With a little over a week till the playoffs, there are no less than seven teams vying for four places. No side is safe and the only side that cannot qualify is the Punjab Kings, who beat table-toppers Mumbai Indians in their last outing.

The double round robin tournament is being contested by eight teams. To make the playoffs, a team therefore needs to win eight out of fourteen games, provided things aren’t complicated by abandoned matches and the like. Mumbai, who have won seven games and have four to play are the most likely to qualify as they need only one win from four. You see how it works? Easy isn‘t it?

Then Delhi look pretty good. Although not safe either for they need to win two games out of four. You would fancy them to do that, but you never know. For everyone else however, things are a bit more tricky.

Rajasthan, Bangalore, Chennai, Kolkata and Deccan are all still in the IPL 3 mix. With many of these teams playing against each other over the next week or so, we are into virtual knockout territory.

After beating Kolkata this evening, Bangalore need to win two of their remaining three matches to make the cut. Kolkata now need to win three from three.

Earlier today Deccan beat Chennai. These two sides need to win all three of their remaining matches for a semi-final berth.

With six wins from eleven games, Rajasthan can afford only one loss from their final three league outings.

A quick look at the fixtures list below makes it obvious that there are very few dead rubbers in our near future. Don’t forget also that all IPL contracts end at the end of this season, so players will be looking to impress so that they fetch high sums at the next auction.

Fixtures

Apr 11 [Sun], 10	16:00 [IST]	Rajasthan Royals VsMumbai Indians	Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
Apr 11 [Sun], 10	20:00 [IST]	Delhi Daredevils Vs Kings XI Punjab	Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
Apr 12 [Mon], 10	20:00 [IST]	Deccan Chargers Vs Royal Challengers Bangalore	Vidarbha Cricket Association Stadium, Nagpur
Apr 13 [Tue], 10	16:00 [IST]	Chennai Super Kings VsKolkata Knight Riders	MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Apr 13 [Tue], 10	20:00 [IST]	Mumbai Indians Vs Delhi Daredevils	Brabourne Stadium, Mumbai
Apr 14 [Wed], 10	20:00 [IST]	Rajasthan Royals Vs Royal Challengers Bangalore	Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur
Apr 15 [Thu], 10	20:00 [IST]	Chennai Super Kings VsDelhi Daredevils	MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chepauk, Chennai
Apr 16 [Fri], 10	20:00 [IST]	Deccan Chargers Vs Kings XI Punjab	Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharmasala
Apr 17 [Sat], 10	16:00 [IST]	Royal Challengers Bangalore Vs Mumbai Indians	M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Apr 17 [Sat], 10	20:00 [IST]	Kolkata Knight Riders VsRajasthan Royals	Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Apr 18 [Sun], 10	16:00 [IST]	Delhi Daredevils VsDeccan Chargers	Feroz Shah Kotla, Delhi
Apr 18 [Sun], 10	20:00 [IST]	Kings XI Punjab VsChennai Super Kings	Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharmasala
Apr 19 [Mon], 10	20:00 [IST]	Kolkata Knight Riders VsMumbai Indians	Eden Gardens, Kolkata
Apr 21 [Wed], 10	20:00 [IST]	Semi-Final	M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Apr 22 [Thu], 10	20:00 [IST]	Semi-Final	M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore
Apr 24 [Sat], 10	20:00 [IST]	3rd Place Play-off	Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai
Apr 25 [Sun], 10	20:00 [IST]	Final	Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai