IPL 2019: Go-to bowlers for each team

The Indian Premier League enters its 12th edition in 2019. As always there will be some surprises in store for us this time around as well, as it has been over the last 11 years.

The batsmen may be the heroes in the shortest format of the game, but winning an IPL match let alone a long tournament like IPL depends upon the strength of the bowling unit. Each team has a go-to or a reliable bowler that they can rest their hope on.

The go-to bowlers are the ones that bring back the hope in the fielding side with their tight spells or partnership-breaking wickets.

In no particular order, let’s have a look at the go-to bowlers who can propel their respective teams to victory.

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#8 Delhi Capitals - Sandeep Lamichhane

Sandeep Lamichhane

Sandeep Lamichhane will be playing his second season with the Delhi Capitals side after making his debut in the last season. In the span of two years, Sandeep has already earned the status of being their go-to bowler.

This quick growth is because of the mystery that he brings to the table. Mystery spinners are the players that each target in any Auction and the success shown by him in the BBL and other T20 leagues make him a valuable commodity in any team.

Leg-spinners have become a vital part of any T20 setup. With a senior figure like Amit Mishra in the squad, Lamichhane is bound to grow as a bowler.

A clever bowler far beyond his years with world-beating variations and disguises, Lamichhane is definitely one for the future.

#7 Kings XI Punjab - Andrew Tye

Andrew Tye

The Purple Cap holder of the IPL season 11 will once again be the go-to bowler of Kings XI Punjab in the 2019 season. Andrew Tye was the first Australian as well as first player from Kings XI Punjab to win the Purple Cap.

Tye is one of the best T20 bowlers going around at the moment. He performed brilliantly in the last IPL, and his variations proved to be too hard to read for even some of the top players.

In the 20 IPL matches that Tye has played, he has taken a total of 36 wickets at an average of just 16.36. He has nearly taken two wickets in every match.

Even with new additions like Varun Chakravarthy, Tye can be the go-to bowler for Ravichandran Ashwin when the team needs a breakthrough.

#6 Royal Challengers Bangalore - Yuzvendra Chahal

Yuzvendra Chahal

Yuzvendra Chahal has been and will continue to be the go-to bowler for Virat Kohli when it comes to the IPL.

From warming the benches in Mumbai Indians, Chahal has grown to become the linchpin of the RCB's bowling setup. Even in the last IPL season, it was evident that Virat Kohli always went to Chahal in crunch situations, and he responded well.

One of the few bowlers who doesn't mind to lure the batsmen with the flight, several of his wickets have come with the batsmen attempting to clear the fence. In the 70 matches that he has played for RCB, Chahal has taken a total of 82 wickets.

Chahal with his 6-for in Australia has booked his tickets to the 2019 ICC World Cup, and this inclusion can make him even more confident, and that is something Kohli and men will be hoping for.

#5 Mumbai Indians - Jasprit Bumrah

Jasprit Bumrah

Mumbai Indians are a team known to produce young Indian talents. Jasprit Bumrah will probably go down as one of the best players to have been produced by MI. The pacer from Gujarat has managed to perfect the art of bowling inch-perfect yorkers after being an understudy to Lasith Malinga in his earlier years for the franchise.

In the 61 matches that he has represented the Mumbai Indians franchise, Bumrah has taken 63 wickets with a best of 3/7.

Rohit Sharma will once again depend on his ace bowler to come good in the IPL to win the trophy for the record 4th time. But one of the major concern for Mumbai Indians is the availability of their go-to fast bowler as he might be rested for games because of the ICC World Cup. Only time will tell how many games does Bumrah play in this season of Indian Premier League.

#4 Rajasthan Royals - Jofra Archer

Jofra Archer

Rajasthan Royals had a middling IPL season in 2018 and most of their success was mostly because of the rich vein of form of Jos Buttler. One of the positives to come out of the tournament for the franchise was the emergence of Jofra Archer.

At any time in the match, the Royals had Archer to throw the ball to. The large square boundaries in Rajasthan and the youngster's ability to hit the deck hard blended very well.

The Royals will be looking towards the game-changer in him to step up when the senior players in the team leave for national duty.

In the 10 IPL matches that the speedster from Barbados played, Archer managed to take 15 wickets at an economy rate of 8.37 which is decent for a death bowler.

#3 Kolkata Knight Riders - Kuldeep Yadav

Kuldeep Yadav

Kolkata Knight Riders are one of the earliest teams to play a mystery spinner in the side. With a change in his bowling action, Sunil Narine's potency with the ball in hand has declined slightly. But KKR still has a chinaman bowler who can rise to the occasion.

In the 31 matches that he played in the purple and gold jersey, Kuldeep Yadav has taken 35 wickets. While playing for India, he has taken 33 wickets in just 17 matches at a strike-rate of 11.55. These stats prove that overseas batsmen still find it difficult to figure out Kuldeep Yadav.

Not only India's World Cup hopes to rest on Kuldeep Yadav, but KKR's IPL hopes also rest on the chinaman exponent.

Kuldeep's unorthodox bowling will be handy in the middle overs. He will be looking to pick wickets and choke the flow of runs along with Sunil Narine.

#2 Sunrisers Hyderabad - Rashid Khan

Rashid Khan

The Afghanistan sensation, Rashid Khan, needs no introduction as he is one of the top-ranked bowlers in ODIs and T20Is. In IPL history, he has picked up 38 wickets in 31 matches at an impressive economy of 6.69.

Nobody has taken more wickets in T20 in this year than Rashid Khan. In the 57 T20 matches that he has played in 2018, Rashid has taken 89 wickets at an economy rate of mere 6.47.

He has improved his batting skills as well, as he finished few games for his team in the Afghanistan Premier League.

With the skills that Rashid Khan, he is the go-to player of any team that he plays. Once again he will be crucial for SRH's success in this tournament.

SRH will be hoping for another sensational outing from Rashid and provide them with match-winning performances.

#1 Chennai Super Kings - Mohit Sharma

Mohit Sharma

2019 will see the return of Mohit Sharma to the defending champions Chennai Super Kings. The Yellow brigade will continue to be led by Mahendra Singh Dhoni under whom Mohit flourished as a player and even went on to become a regular feature in the Indian limited-overs side for a brief period of time.

Mohit has previously played for CSK for 3 years from 2013 to 2015. He also won the coveted Purple Cap in 2014 and was a leading wicket-taker for his side during the time-period.

He will once again be a bowler that MS Dhoni will go to at any point of time in the match after being picked by the franchise for a whopping amount. He can lend a helping hand to Dwayne Bravo in the death overs.