The race for this trophy gets into it's last lap now.

Yeah, let’s talk IPL. It’s getting pretty interesting now. Each match is make or break for them now. There are some indicators as to who will reach the semis and who will not but still the field is pretty wide open. Any thing can happen. It’s a damn good time to take a guess on who is going to make it and who won’t. The standing of various teams as on the morning of 15 May 09 is as follows.

And before we start discussing any further here are the balance matches including today’s.

So, how do these teams stack up against each other? Let’s check them out one by one. Here’s my take on them.

Delhi Daredevils. 16 pts already with four matches to go. No point discussing further. They are through although they got to maintain their winning momentum to be better placed in the semis and even beyond.

Chennai Super Kings. 13 pts from 11 matches. Not bad. As for the balance three matches, they will have to watch out for Mumbai and Kings XI. Should be able to make it.

Rajasthan Royals. 13 pts from 12 matches. Decent. Of the balance two matches they might win one against KKR. Beyond this they will have to hope like hell that they are ahead in their net run rate. Remember, they were all out for 57 in their first match against Royal Challengers? It’s now that they may come to repent that bad loss. Having said this I feel that they just might be able to scrape their way through.

Deccan Chargers. 12 pts from 11 matches. Not bad. Of the balance three matches they have to win at least two to be sure of their place in semis. And given the fact that they have their balance matches aginst KKR, Kings XI and Royal Challengers I’m sure they can do it. Strong contenders for a semi final place. Just that that they have back to back matches on 16 and 17 May 09, though at the same venue Johannesburg.

Royal Challengers Bangalore. 12 pts from 12 matches. Not good. Their last two matches are against Delhi and Deccan Chargers. Very difficult to beat both of them. They’ll have to play out of their skin to do that. And even then their progress beyond this stage will depend on their net run rate which is not too good either. Unlikely to happen in my opinion.

Mumbai Indians. 11 pts from 12 matches. Bad. I really feel bad for Sachin. I mean, the man is extraordinarily talented but has been given a mediocre team, especially batsmen. Their last two matches are also against two strong teams, Delhi and Chennai. Unlikely to go any further, however bad I may feel for them.

Kings XI Punjab. 10 points from 11 matches. Pretty bad. Out of their last four matches they have lost three, especially the last one against Mumbai when they were beaten by eight wickets. Unlikely to go any further. I might add that Yuvraj needs to cool down a bit. Believe me it will help. And Preity, stop making paranthas for these guys. Let them prove their worth first.

Kolkata Knight Riders. 3 pts from 11 matches. Pathetic. They are finished but they got to fight for their pride, if they have any left that is. Is SRK, Bhookha Naan and party listening?

So there you have it. That’s my feeling going by the way things stand today. I’ll name the teams again.

Delhi, Chennai, Deccan and Rajasthan.

What do you have to say? Do you guys agree with me or not? What are your picks? Tell me.

APROPOS 21 May 09. Well, I’ve been generally right. Out of four teams I predicted three have made it to semis. Not bad. Wouldn’t you say so? Damn good for Kumble and Mallya. What a comeback! Commendable job. Having said this I would like to add that personally I feel pretty bad for Warne and Sachin. They are true geniuses who should have made it. But it was not to be. As they say, you win some and you lose some.

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Posted on May 15th, 2009 India calling • Tags: Bhookha Naan, Cricket, IPL, KKR, Semi Final, SRK, team. • RSS 2.0 feed • Leave a response, or trackback