Ipl’s final four the cricket has been interesting so far as we get to its business end

Ipl’s final four the cricket has been interesting so far as we get to its business end

It has been yet another edition of IPL cricket with four teams now confirmed for this season’s play-offs. Mumbai Indians, Delhi Capitals, Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bangalore have made it to the final four. But their paths to the business end of the tournament have been extremely competitive. Being played in the UAE this year due to the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, there were doubts about the quality of cricket given the unusual circumstances. Bio-bubbles, fake crowd sounds and empty stadiums as essential elements of the new protocols were big disrupters. Nevertheless, despite its many lacunae, there were some good cricketing performances on display.

Whether it was the explosive Chris Gayle or the all-round brilliance of Ben Stokes or the express pace of Joffra Archer, cricket fans may not have reason to complain about the on-field calibre of the matches themselves, leaving aside their circumstances. There have been runs galore, good catches and close finishes, including the first-ever double super over. Given the dire circumstances of pandemic hit India, the tournament may have been able to provide a modicum of normalcy, at least to cricket lovers.

The notable Indian performers this year have been Mumbai Indians’ Suryakumar Yadav, Royal Challengers Bangalore’s Devdutt Padikkal and Kolkata Knight Riders’ Varun Chakravarthy. They could serve Indian cricket well in the coming years. But the omission of Chennai Super Kings – one of the most successful IPL teams – from the business end of the tournament has been a surprise, throwing the spotlight on skipper MS Dhoni’s waning prowess. Overall, there have been many highs as well as lows in the cricket tournament.