Wednesday, May 13, 2009

IPL Leaders 2009: End of Q3 Results

Yesterday was the 25th day of the IPL, which hosted the 41st and 42nd match of the league, thus ending the 3rd Quarter of the group stages.

Deccan Chargers dominated Q1 and Q2, ending both quarters at the top of the table.

However at the end of Q3, it is the Delhi Daredevils that are sitting pretty on top, having lost only 2 matches, the lowest among all teams, thus far.

They have also played the least number of matches, hence are in a very strong position with the most points and matches in hand.

Despite their dominance, none of the Daredevil's top order batsmen - Gambhir, Sehwag, Dilshan, De Villiers, or Warner - feature among the top 5 run scorers at the end of Q3.

Leading Batsmen
1. Matthew Hayden (CSK) - 9 inn, 426 runs at 47.33
2. Suresh Raina (CSK) - 9 inn, 309 runs at 34.33
3. JP Duminy (MI) - 9 inn, 297 runs at 49.50
4. Yuvraj Singh (KXIP) - 11 inn, 296 runs at 32.88
5. Jacques Kallis (RCB) - 10 inn, 274 runs at 30.44

Hayden firmly holds on to the number 1 position, just like he did in Q1 and Q2. Only this time he has stretched his lead further, and is more than a 100 runs ahead of the next best batsman. It doesn't look like anyone will be catching up with him by the time the IPL ends, and he will certainly be taking the Orange cap back to Australia.

Raina also continued his good form in Q3 and ended the quarter in the same position he held at the end of Q2. His and Hayden's form has finally managed to get the Chennai Super Kings into the top 4, something they had not managed in the previous 2 quarters. CSK even topped the table briefly during this period and are now sitting at 2nd place.

Duminy breaks into the top 5 for the first time this quarter on the back of some powerful performances for the Mumbai Indians that included 4 50s, which are the most among all batsmen. His form has been instrumental in driving MI into the top 4 and they end Q3 with an eye on a semi-final spot.

Yuvraj finally found some form this quarter and ends it in the top 5 after 2 50s. He has not been as devastating as he should have been in the IPL, and his lack of consistency has resulted in KXIP staring at an exit before the semis.

Kallis holds on to his position within the top 5, but just barely. He was 4th at the end of Q2, and this time slips a notch lower. Only 9 runs separate Kallis and the 3 men that follow him - AB De Villiers, Adam Gilchrist, and Sachin Tendulkar.

Its interesting to note that the top 4 run scorers in the IPL at the end of Q3 are left handers.

Another interesting fact is that after Raina and Yuvraj, the next best Indian batsman is Sachin - no Rohit Sharma, no Gambhir, no Sehwag, no Dhoni, no Pathan, but Sachin. Is the petition still running?

Leading bowlers
1. RP Singh (DC) - 10 inn, 16 wickets at 14.93
2. Lasith Malinga (MI) - 10 inn, 15 wickets at 15.13
3. Ashish Nehra (DDD) - 8 inn, 14 wickets at 16.14
4. Yusuf Abdullah (KXIP) - 9 inn, 14 wickets at 17.21
5. Laxmipathy Balaji (CSK) - 8 inn, 12 wickets at 16.41

RP Singh who was at number 2 at the end of both Q1 and Q2, ends this quarter as the leading wicket taker in the IPL. His success has played an important role in Deccan Chargers holding on to a place in the top 4.

RP's rise however has been helped by the fact that Kings XI Punjab have kept Yusuf Abdullah out of the team for the last 2 matches due to the return of Brett Lee. I feel that is a bit harsh on the man who was the leading wicket taker of the IPL till Q2.

Malinga has been consistent throughout the IPL staying among the top 5 bowlers in all quarters, despite being a bit more expensive lately.

While Balaji has surprised one and all by holding on to the 5th position since the end of Q2.

I was a bit shocked to see Nehra among the top 5 bowlers but then realised how well he had bowled in the last few matches for the Daredevils.

The race towards the purple cap seems to be between RP, Malinga, and Nehra, and I sense that its going to go to Sri Lanka.

Left handers dominate the top 5 bowlers as well with 3 of them of that variety.

What is it with left handers and the IPL? The Orange Cap and Purple Cap winners of IPL 2008 were both left handers!

Its interesting to note that there are no spinners among the top 5 bowlers despite all the talk about the impact the spinners have had in this IPL. However, there are 4 spinners in the top 10.

Other Stats
Highest Team Score: 211-4, RR vs KXIP
Highest Individual Score: 105*, AB De Villiers (DDD) vs CSK
Best Strike Rate (min 150 runs): 164.61, Dwayne Smith (DC)
Most Sixes: 17, Matthew Hayden (CSK)
Best Bowling Performance: 5-5, Anil Kumble (BRC) vs RR
Best Economy Rate (min 18 overs): 5.63, Harbhajan Singh (MI)

Finally 200 was surpassed during Q3 and it was none other than by the defending champions who scored 211-4 against the Kings XI.

Given the strong batting line ups of CSK, DDD, DC, and Kings XI it sure was a surprise to see a relatively weaker Rajasthan Royals become the first and only team to score more than 200 in this season of the IPL.

AB De Villiers' unbeaten 105 remains the top score by a batsman, while Dwayne Smith still has the best strike rate, which in fact is higher than the rate he had at the end of Q2.

Hayden's 6 sixes in one match against the Kings XI has enabled him to overtake his former opening partner Adam Gilchrist in the number of 6s hit by a batsman in the IPL this season. Though he leads by only 1.

No one has yet been able to better Kumble's performance in the very first match of this IPL, while Bhajji gives Straight Points some food for thought regarding his economical performances for MI.

The final quarter of the IPL starts tomorrow and ends in about 8 days from now. Almost the last week of the tournament and we're still not sure about the final 4 - this is what I call the beauty of the IPL.

We'll be back with the Q4 report at the end of the group stages.

Make your pitch on this post...



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3 Pitched:

  1. Tejas said...
     

    Delhi Dare Devils are doing good infact. They have good balance. A B DeVilliers is their highest run scorer so far. Only Century of this season has been scored by him only. Delhi has confirmed their position in Semi

  2. Q said...
     

    Thats right Tejas. I never said otherwise. They are probably the only team who have confirmed their place and are the favorites for the title too.

    One my favorite teams they are.

    But Im surprised that none of their batsmen are among the top 5 run scorers. As of the 42nd match.

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