The Indian Premier League (IPL) has seen six different champions in the first 12 seasons till 2019. The Rajasthan Royals, Deccan Chargers and the Sunrisers Hyderabad have won the title once each while the Kolkata Knight Riders and Chennai Super Kings have won it twice and thrice respectively. The only team to win the IPL title four times is the Mumbai Indians. The schedule for the IPL 2020 season is out but still around 30 days remaining in the tournament start. We have done an analysis for you to answer the most debated question: Which is the best team in IPL history?
The Mumbai-based franchise has had star-studded squads and support staff right from the first season in 2008. Sachin Tendulkar, Sanath Jayasuriya, Ricky Ponting, Shaun Pollock, Harbhajan Singh, Jonty Rhodes, Mahela Jayawardene, Lasith Malinga, Rohit Sharma, to name a few, have had an immense contribution in making the team what it is today.
MI could not convert their on-paper dominance into results till 2012. They lacked a certain X-factor which stopped them from winning the crucial matches. They failed to qualify for the knockout games in the first two seasons. In 2010, they lost in the Final. In the following couple of years, they were knocked out in the play-offs. Thus, despite boasting of a strong squad, they could not deliver.
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In 2013, Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar joined forces with Rohit Sharma to bring their first trophy home. Ponting was appointed as the captain at the beginning of the season but later decided to step down after failing to get the desired results. The Mumbai-born cricketer took over the captaincy mid-season and became the lucky charm for the men in ‘Blue and Gold’. He had to his service the iconic Sachin Tendulkar and the veteran Lasith Malinga throughout the season. The duo not only guided him but also delivered whenever required.
They were fortunate enough to excavate gems like Hardik Pandya, his elder brother Krunal Pandya and Jasprit Bumrah to form a strong core along with the West Indian Kieron Pollard and veteran Indian off-spinner Harbhajan Singh. On the back of these players, the MI side kept dominating and went on to win the 2015 and 2017 trophies as well. No other team had won 3 titles.
In 2018, Harbhajan Singh left MI and was bought by their arch-rivals Chennai Super Kings. (CSK). The same year, CSK won their third title too and equalled MI’s record. The comeback boys, as they are called, came back in 2019 with all guns blazing and won a record fourth title. Their love for odd years since 2013 has become the talking point. However, with the arsenal they possess in the squad, they pose serious capability of winning the tournament in even years too!
The MI players have had a good auction before the 2020 season and their team is as good as ever as they fly to UAE in search of their fifth title. Don’t forget to keep checking IPL Live Score here on SportsKeeda from 19 September 2020!
