Defending champions Chennai Super Kings will kick off the proceedings in Match 1 of the 2024 Indian Premier League season as the MS Dhoni-led side will host Royal Challengers Bangalore at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.
The epic battle between two franchises would feature the two most robust fan bases camping on Marina Beach in anticipation of the contest that would mark the return of Dhoni to competitive cricket after a break of almost 10 months while former Indian and RCB skipper Virat Kohli would also be marking his return to the field after more than two months.
While the Super Kings’ fanbase is ready to witness a probable last dance of their beloved skipper, the Royal Challengers’ fans witnessed the franchise bagging their first trophy in the WPL 2024 final and they would be hoping for the same from Andy Flower who has succeeded Sanjay Bangar in the head coach role ahead of the 2024 IPL season.
What has happened so far?
In IPL 2023, CSK lifted the trophy for the fifth time under MSD’s captaincy courtesy of Ravindra Jadeja’s heroics in the last over that sent the fans present at the Narendra Modi Stadium in a frenzy.
At the IPL 2024 Auction, CSK bagged Rachin Ravindra and Daryl Mitchell to replace the outgoing Ben Stokes and Dwaine Pretorius while Mustafizur Rahman was roped in to replace Sisanda Magala. The Super Kings also signed Sameer Rizvi for INR 8.4 Crores and the management would be backing the Uttar Pradesh batter to shine in the cash-rich league.
On the other hand, RCB missed out on qualifying for the playoffs as a Shubman Gill century overpowered a century from Kohli in the last league match of the season ending a topsy-turvy journey for the Royal Challengers.
Newly appointed Director of Cricket Mo Bobat had a tough time at the IPL 2024 Auction as the Bengaluru-based franchise went after every fast bowler and left gaps in their lower middle order as well as the spin department with Alzarri Joseph, Yash Dayal, Tom Curran, and Lockie Ferguson signed in Dubai while Cameron Green and Mayank Dagar were traded in during the pre-auction window.
Head to Head Record
The Southern Battle between CSK and RCB has been played out a total of 31 times across 14 years with Dhoni’s side having the dominant upper hand with 20 wins while the Royal Challengers have won only 10 times and one contest ended as a no result.
Also Read: WPL 2024 Team of the Tournament ft. Shafali, Perry, Kapp, Harmanpreet, and more
It would be concerning for Flower that RCB is playing the opening clash against a side they have defeated only once in the last five encounters.
Key Players
Shivam Dube (Chennai Super Kings): Shivam Dube has transformed into a spin-hitting beast since his move to the Chennai Super Kings and also laid down a marker in the T20I series against Afghanistan scoring 124 runs in three innings at a strike rate of 159.
With RCB missing an experienced world-class spinner, Dube could take advantage of Dagar’s inexperience and Karn Sharma’s lack of competitive matches as the duo would be looking to impress the support staff on a spin-friendly surface in Chennai.
Glenn Maxwell is in blistering form and would shoulder the responsibility in the middle order
Glenn Maxwell (Royal Challengers Bengaluru): Glenn Maxwell unleashed in the 2023-24 Big Bash League smashing 243 runs at an astounding strike rate of 173.57. The former Melbourne Stars skipper had an average of 34.71 and a highest score of 35 signifying that the power-hitter wasn’t afraid of losing his wickets in the middle overs.
Maxwell also had a good time at the 2023 ICC Cricket World Cup scoring 400 runs at a brilliant strike of more than 150 while maintaining an average of 66.66. The unbelievable double-century at the Wankhade Stadium in Mumbai contributed to more than half of those runs.
Team News from Both Camps
CSK has assembled a squad on paper that is more than capable of lifting the trophy yet again but star opening batter Devon Conway has already been ruled out of the tournament and two new signings, Ravindra and Mitchell would be hoping to plug the gaps in the Super Kings’ batting order.
Matheesha Pathirana has also been ruled out of the opening match after suffering from a torn hamstring during the T20I series between Sri Lanka and Bangladesh while Mustafizur Rahman was also stretchered off the field in an ODI match between the two sides but seems fit to represent CSK in the season opener.
Almost every franchise is heading into the 2024 IPL season with a growing injury list but the Flower-coached side has every player available and would be aiming to put out their best players on the field.
Predicted XIs
Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rachin Ravindra, Ajinkya Rahane, Shivam Dube, Daryl Mitchell, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni © (wk), Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Maheesh Theekshana, Mustafizur Rahman
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Faf du Plessis ©, Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Mayank Dagar, Karn Sharma, Akash Deep, Reece Topley, Mohammed Siraj
Prediction
Both sides would be hot on their heels in search of victory in the season opener and it guarantees to be a spicy encounter in Chennai on Friday evening. The Super Kings hold the edge in the head-to-head records but concerns in the medical room could plague the hosts as Faf du Plessis and co. would be eager to please their yearning fans.