IPL 2019: Ranking the fast bowlers of the 8 IPL teams

IPL 2019 auctions are done and the teams are now set. The only thing left to see is whether the teams decide to do any last minute chopping and changing in the transfer window.

The pace bowling battery of any IPL team plays a crucial role in providing the early breakthroughs and restricting runs in the death overs, two crucial aspects of the modern-day T20 game.

It is for this reason that the fast bowlers go for huge bucks in the auction. IPL 2019 auction was not different with Jaydev Unadkat demanding huge payday even after his below-par performances for Rajasthan Royals in the last IPL season.

In this article, let us now try to analyze the fast bowlers of all the 8 IPL teams and see which IPL teams have an advantage over others.

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#8 Kings XI Punjab

Andrew Tye

Punjab had a major revamp of the side and the coaching staff in IPL 2019. Andrew Tye and Ankit Rajpoot were the only fast bowlers that were retained before the auctions and they went on to pick some good quality options on December 18, 2018.

The fact that Andrew Tye might have to leave midway through the series for International duty has forced them to find a replacement buy in Hardus Viljoen. They also bought Sam Curran and Moises Henriques as fast bowling allrounders in the squad.

Among the Indian pacers, Mohammed Shami, Agnivesh Ayachi, and Arshdeep Singh were the major buys. That's a total of 8 fast bowling options in the squad. But one keeps wondering, whether Punjab overbought spinners and neglected other departments?

Possible fast bowling lineup of Kings XI Punjab

1. Andrew Tye / Hardus Viljoen (when Tye leaves)
2. Mohammed Shami
3. Ankit Rajpoot
4. Sam Curran

Overall Verdict - The backups seem to be inadequate on paper as the risk of Viljoen underperforming when Tye leaves looms large. Also, it remains to be seen how Moises Henriques takes to the IPL 2019 season - Average.

#7 Rajasthan Royals

Jofra Archer will be the pace bowling mainstay of Rajasthan

Rajasthan had felt that they made a mistake in shelling huge mistake for Jaydev Unadkat in the last IPL season. This year they have bought him again maybe for a bit lesser but a lot higher than what other pacers could have demanded. Dhawal Kulkarni remains one of the loyal Royals and Varun Aaron and S Midhun join the duo.

Among the overseas options, Oshane Thomas has been brought in as a backup to Jofra Archer. Among the all-rounder options, there is Ben Stokes. But the sad thing about the auction strategy of Rajasthan is that they have not bought any overseas fast bowling overseas allrounders in the IPL 2019 auction. Stuart Binny and Shubam Ranjane seem to be the only two Indian options too. That's a total of 9 fast bowling options in the squad.

Possible fast bowling line-up of Rajasthan Royals

1. Jofra Archer
2. Ben Stokes
3. Jaydev Unadkat
4. Dhawal Kulkarni/ Varun Aaron
5. Stuart Binny

Overall Verdict - There are no good fast bowling allrounders to replace Ben Stokes when he leaves the tournament midway. Rajasthan definitely could have planned their auctions better - Average.

#6 Royal Challengers Bangalore

Umesh Yadav

From the first look, RCB seems to have a balanced fast-bowling department. There are Nathan Coulter-Nile and Tim Southee for the overseas fast-bowler slot. Umesh Yadav, Kulwant Khejroliya, Navdeep Saini, and Mohammed Siraj are the Indian pace quartet of RCB. Among the fast bowling allrounders, there is Marcus Stoinis, Colin de Grandhomme, and Shivam Dube to do the long run-ups for Bangalore. That's a total of nine fast bowling options in the squad.

The one thing that goes against them will be that Nathan Coulter-Nile and Marcus Stoinis might have to leave in the middle of the tournament. That does bring a hollow aspect to an otherwise balanced squad. The New Zealanders Tim Southee and Colin de Grandhomme are the covers and Bangalore will be hoping that they stay injury free in good form.

Possible fast bowling lineup of Royal Challengers Bangalore

1. Umesh Yadav
2. Mohammed Siraj
3. Nathan Coulter-Nile / Tim Southee
4. Marcus Stoinis / Colin de Grandhomme
5. Shivam Dube

Overall Verdict - There are two fast bowling options leaving the tournament midway. But there are backups to cover for them - Slightly above average.

#5 Kolkata Knight Riders

Lockie Ferguson will have his debut IPL season in 2019

Before the start of the IPL 2019 auctions, KKR had three young Indian pace bowlers in Prasidh Krishna, Shivam Mavi, and Kamlesh Nagarkoti. They added Prithvi Raj Yarra to that list and then went on to buy three overseas fast bowling options in Harry Gurney, Anrich Nortje and Lockie Ferguson. Among the fast bowling allrounders, they had Andre Russell and added Carlos Brathwaite to that list apart from Shrikant Mundhe. That's a total of 10 fast bowling options in the squad.

KKR has gone the smart way of avoiding the players that might be leaving midway and went for players who will be available for the entire tournament. While Carlos Brathwaite seems to be a smart move, it remains to be seen how well the overseas pace bowling trio takes to the Indian pitches.

Possible fast bowling lineup of Kolkata Knight Riders

1. Lockie Ferguson
2. Prasidh Krishna
3. Shivam Mavi
4. Andre Russell
5. Carlos Brathwaite

Overall Verdict - There are adequate backups and there are no players leaving the tournament midway. But the inexperienced pace battery might just be a spot of bother for them - Slightly above average.

#4 Delhi Capitals

Kagiso Rabada will be the pace bowling mainstay of Delhi Capitals.

Delhi has changed not just their name, but a lot of players int heir lineup as part of their revamp. Delhi Capitals choose to retain Kagiso Rabada, Trent Boult, Chris Morris, Avesh Khan, and Harshal Patel. But then, they added B Ayyappa, Nathu Singh, Keemo Paul, Sherfane Rutherford, and Ishant Sharma to their squad. That's a total of 10 fast bowling options in the squad.

Ishant Sharma comes back to the IPL after a long hiatus and will be looking forward to proving a point. Nathu Singh, Ayyappa and Harshal Patel are handy backups for any IPL side. Delhi also has the advantage of having three fast bowling allrounders in Chris Morris, Sherfane Rutherford, and Keemo Paul out of which two of them can be expected to make the final playing XI.

Possible fast bowling lineup of Delhi Capitals

1. Kagiso Rabada
2. Avesh Khan
3. Ishant Sharma
4. Sherfane Rutherford
5. Keemo Paul

Overall Verdict - There are adequate backups and there are no players leaving the tournament midway - Above average.

#3 Sunrisers Hyderabad

Bhuvneshwar Kumar

Sunrisers Hyderabad has always been known as the den of the fast bowlers and the 2019 IPL season is no less different. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Sandeep Sharma, Basil Thampi, T Natarajan, Siddarth Kaul, and Khaleel Ahmed are the six pretty good Indian fast bowlers they have in their squad. Billy Stanlake seems to be the only overseas option and he might not be available for the entire season too. But, Hyderabad seems to have trust in their Indian pace bowlers to do the job.

Among the allrounders, Vijay Shankar seems to be the new addition to their squad as a fast bowling allrounder. Hence there are a total of eight fast-bowling options for Hyderabad.

Possible fast bowling lineup of Sunrisers Hyderabad

1. Bhuvneshwar Kumar
2. Khaleel Ahmed
3. Sandeep Sharma
4. Vijay Shankar
5. Billy Stanlake

Overall Verdict - The overall verdict would have been excellent if Billy Stanlake was available for the entire season. But he leaves in the middle of the tournament and the fact that Sunrisers did not opt to buy any replacement for him is quite illogical. We can all agree how good their Indian pace bowlers are, but they need an overseas flavour to go from above average to excellent - Above average.

#2 Chennai Super Kings

Lungi Ngidi

Chennai has beefed up their fast bowling department in the IPL 2019 auctions with the purchase of Mohit Sharma. He joins the existing Indian quartet of Deepak Chahar, Shardul Thakur, KM Asif, and Monu Kumar. The overseas options include Lungi Ngidi and David Willey. Among the allrounders, Dwayne Bravo and Shane Watson can be expected to roll their arms over for Chennai. That's a total of nine fast bowling options in the squad.

Overall there seem to be adequate options for Chennai and they have maintained their winning formula of the last IPL. Among the additions, Mohit Sharma can be handy with the ball and his presence will keep Deepak Chahar and Shardul Thakur on their toes. Lungi Ngidi is expected to be available for the entire season of the IPL 2019 and can be quite a handful with his raw pace and accuracy.

Possible fast bowling lineup of Chennai.

1. Lungi Ngidi
2. Mohit Sharma/Shardul Thakur
3. Deepak Chahar/Shardul Thakur
4. Dwayne Bravo
5. Shane Watson

Overall Verdict - There are adequate backups and there are no players leaving the tournament midway - Above average.

# 1 Mumbai Indians

Mitchell McClenaghan

Mumbai had a foreign pace bowling trio in Mitchell McClenaghan, Adam Milne, and Jason Behrendorff before the auctions. It looked as if they might not be needing anymore overseas pace options.

But, the Mumbai management surprised everyone when they went onto pick Lasith Malinga as their fourth overseas pace bowler. A clear indication that they might be looking to play two overseas pace bowlers in the playing XI.

Jasprit Bumrah was the lone wolf in the Mumbai pace dugout, but now, he has the support of Barinder Sran and Rasikh Dar. Among the fast bowling allrounders, there is always Hardik Pandya, Kieron Pollard and Ben Cutting in the fray. That's a total of 10 fast bowling options in the squad.

Possible fast bowling lineup of Mumbai Indians

1. Jasprit Bumrah
2. Mitchell McClenaghan
3. Hardik Pandya
4. Keiron Pollard
5. Lasith Malinga/Ben Cutting

Overall Verdict - There are adequate backups and there are no players leaving the tournament midway - Excellent.