IPL 2021: CSK's Transformation, Maxwell's Return & Hardik's Failure - Tournament Review of IPL 2021

It has been a dramatic end (or pause) to what was an IPL edition being staged in unprecedented times! The Covid-19 pandemic finally got the last word as it forced the 14th edition of the most prestigious T20 league in the world to come to a sudden halt with its future uncertain. However, we did have three and a half weeks of some entertaining cricket with a few memorable performances while some big names failed to meet the expectations.

We look back at a Tournament Review of IPL 2021.

1. A Great Transformation For The Chennai Super Kings

The Chennai Super Kings had their worst campaign last year losing 8 of their 14 matches, finishing second-last in the group stage and for the very first time not qualifying for the playoffs. They had a complete reversal this year winning five of their first 7 matches also playing a brand of attacking and aggressive cricket which was missing from their campaign last year. The batting was the main difference for CSK in IPL 2021 – it clicked and they notched up a total of in excess of 200 on two occasions and between 185 and 200 another three times batting first this season.

The stand out feature about CSK’s batting performance this year was the collective effort of the top 7. Faf du Plessis continued from where he left in the UAE in 2020 scoring 320 runs in 7 matches at a strike rate of 145.45 including 4 fifties. The platform laid by him and Ruturaj Gaikwad (196 runs at a strike rate of 128.94) eased the pressure on the middle order and went a long way enabling CSK to put up massive totals.

Moeen Ali was a revelation with the bat at number three. He was sent in for a specific role – to produce the cameos to keep the momentum going and the scoring rate high. Ali scored 206 runs at a strike rate of 157.25.

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2. Mumbai Indians – An Indifferent Campaign

Mumbai Indians had an indifferent start to their IPL 2021 campaign losing three of their first five matches. The batting let the five-time champions down. A couple of their batsmen, which included Kieron Pollard, hit form in the last couple of matches and MI were making a comeback just when the league was suspended. Overall, there were three major disappointments with the bat this year for the two-time defending champions.

Suryakumar Yadav was not at his best this season. He was not able to convert the starts into substantial match-winning contributions as he did regularly in the UAE last year. He had an aggregate of 173 runs in 7 innings with just one fifty. Ishan Kishan was a big disappointment with the bat with an aggregate of just 73 runs in 5 matches at a strike rate of barely 83. The left-hander was the top-scorer for MI last year.

The biggest setback for MI though this year was the form of their X-factor in the middle order – Hardik Pandya. Hardik managed to muster just 52 runs in 6 innings at a strike rate of around 118. He lost his hitting prowess and failed in 5 of the 6 innings he played in the tournament. Hardik was instrumental in MI’s back to back title triumphs in IPL 2019 and 2020 scoring cameos in the middle order making impossible targets achievable along with Kieron Pollard. He had the second-highest strike rate in both the editions.

3. The Dhawan-Shaw Partnership & DC’s Hat-trick of Good Performances

The Delhi Capitals continued to impress this year too and with 6 wins from 8 matches, were at the top of the points table when the league was called-off. The charge in the batting was led by the two openers – Shikhar Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw added two century stands and three other fifty partnerships in the competition. The left-hander continued from where he left off last year and was the highest scorer of the season with 380 runs in 8 matches including three fifties. Shaw, who ended the tournament in UAE last year with a string of single-digit scores, picked up from where he left in the 2021 Vijay Hazare Trophy. He blasted 308 runs at a stunning strike rate of 166.48 also with three half-centuries in the tournament.

With Kagiso Rabada not at his best, it was Avesh Khan who stepped up big-time and led the DC’s charge with the ball. He picked 14 wickets in 8 matches at a strike rate of 12.8 and was also very restrictive giving away just 7.7 runs per over.

The Capitals had made the playoffs in 2019 and were runners-up in the UAE in 2020.

4. The Sun Did Not Rise For The Sunrisers

The Sunrisers had their worst start in the IPL losing six of the 7 matches they played in the tournament. To compound their problems, captain David Warner was sacked mid-season and dropped from the XI after some ‘disagreements’ with the management. A change at the helm, however, with Kane Williamson as skipper, did not change the fortunes of the Hyderabad-based franchise.

Barring Jonny Bairstow, it was a poor batting display by the SRH top-order. Warner was not at his destructive best and had a strike rate of 110.28 in the competition while Manish Pandey was in and out and not at his fluent best. The middle and lower middle order was non-existent.

The biggest disappointment in the bowling was the performance of their Mr Dependables – Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Sandeep Sharma. Kumar returned with 3 wickets in 5 matches and went at 9.1 runs per over while Sharma picked just one solitary wicket from three matches at an economy rate of above 10 before he was dropped.

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5. AB, Maxwell & Harshal Patel – The Three Musketeers of RCB’s Campaign

The Royal Challengers Bangalore had a great start to the season winning their first four matches before losing a couple in their next three encounters. Glenn Maxwell and AB de Villiers were the stars with the bat for the RCB. Maxwell had a dramatic change of fortunes from last year and was the top-scorer with 223 runs in 6 innings with three defining performances. AB continued to be the playmaker in the middle order and produced three match-winning performances – the standout characteristic being his high strike rate of 164.28!

Harshal Patel was the hero with the ball for the Challengers. He picked up a heap of wickets and was the Purple Cap Holder (with 17 wickets in 7 matches) at a strike rate of 9.8. Patel went for a few in the last couple of matches but played a significant role in RCB’s initial campaign starring in the wins against the Mumbai Indians and Knight Riders.

6. KL Rahul – The Phenomenal Consistency of the IPL Run-Machine

KL Rahul continued to pile on the runs for the fourth edition in a row and had the second-highest aggregate when the tournament was suspended. The stylish right-hander switched between anchor and aggressor and scored 331 runs in 7 innings at a strike rate of 136.21 with 4 fifties for the Punjab Kings.

Rahul was the third-highest scorer with 659 runs at an average of 54.91 and strike rate of 158.41 including 6 fifties in 2018 – he was at his destructive best that season. He had the second-highest aggregate in 2019 with 593 runs at 53.9 at a strike rate of 135.28 – his exploits included a hundred and six fifties. Rahul bettered his performance in the UAE in 2020 amassing 670 runs which was the highest aggregate in that edition. No batsman has scored more runs than KL Rahul in the last four editions of the IPL (2018-2021).

7. Pollard & Deepak Chahar – The Performances of the Season

Kieron Pollard’s breathtaking unbeaten 87 off just 34 deliveries against CSK in Delhi was the best batting performance of the season. Pollard came out to bat at 81 for 3 in the 10th over in a 219-run chase and helped MI blast a record 138 runs in the last 10 overs to pull off a sensational win off the last ball of the match. His innings included 8 towering sixes!

Deepak Chahar’s 4-13 in 4 overs was the best bowling performance of the season. Chahar was brilliant with the new ball as he saw the back of Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran and Deepak Hooda within the first 7 overs to break the backbone of the top and middle order of the Punjab Kings and reduce them to 26 for 5.

8. Gill, Kishan, Pooran, Chahal and Morgan – The Famous Five Who Failed To Deliver

There were some big-wigs who failed to deliver and get going in the tournament. Apart from Kishan and Hardik for the Mumbai Indians, the list includes other star Indian players like Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yuzvendra Chahal and Shubman Gill. The KKR opener just scored 132 runs in 7 matches at a paltry strike rate of 117.85 while the leg-break limited overs’ specialist from RCB failed to make any impact in the middle overs. He just bagged 4 wickets in 7 matches at an economy rate of 8.26.

Some big overseas players who failed to live up to their billing were Nicholas Pooran, Eoin Morgan and Jhye Richardson. Pooran had a shocker of an IPL and mustered just 28 runs in 6 innings registering 4 ducks in the tournament.

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