IPL: 3 teams with the most rock-bottom finishes in history

With a resounding loss to the Kolkata Knight Riders earlier in the season, the Rajasthan Royals (RR) finished IPL 2020 as the bottom-ranked team.

One consolation for them would be that this was the closest-ever edition of the IPL, with the two teams above them just separated by net run rate. The loss meant that RR pipped the Chennai Super Kings and the Kings XI Punjab - two teams who at different points in the season looked guaranteed to end up there - to the wooden spoon.

The champions of the inaugural IPL in 2008, RR have been unable to quite live up in the following seasons. Regardless of their patchy record, this was the first time they finished rock bottom in the league, having often missed the playoffs by one or two positions.

A few other teams have finished rock bottom only once - the Deccan Chargers, Kolkata Knight Riders, and Pune Warriors India, in 2008, 2009 and 2012 respectively.

The most successful teams by way of title wins in the IPL, the Mumbai Indians and the Chennai Super Kings, have been spared of the wooden spoon so far. The Sunrisers Hyderabad too, for as long as they have been an IPL team, have evaded the ignominy, which their predecessors the Deccan Chargers could not.

Some teams, however, haven't been quite as lucky and have picked up the rock-bottom tag for multiple editions. While some of these teams had close scraps till the end, others simply didn't turn up all season. Here's a look at the three teams that have lagged behind the most number of times in IPL history.

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#3 RCB: 2 seasons (IPL 2017, 2019)

The Royal Challengers Bangalore have disappointed more often than not. [PC: iplt20.com]

The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are yet to win an IPL title. They have gotten close, having reached the finals in 2009, 2011 and 2016, but have fallen at the final hurdle on each of those occasions.

In 2017 and 2019, RCB put together shambolic performances. They recorded the lowest-ever score in an IPL innings with just 49 all out in the 2017 season.

RCB have been represented by several stars over the years - Anil Kumble, Kevin Pietersen, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Chris Gayle and many others. A consistently performing bowling unit has been what they've lacked, as they lost far too many games at the death.

Yuzvendra Chahal has been the saving grace of their bowling unit in recent years, and with the addition of some young Indian pacers, they seem to be building a team for the long term now.

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#2 KXIP: 3 seasons (IPL 2010, 2015, 2016)

The KXIP dugout has often been a despondent one, as they were knocked out again. [PC: iplt20.com]

The Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) looked set at the halfway mark to end up at the bottom this season. However, a magical run took them to a position of some respectability. KXIP have always had glimmers of hope, but been unable to put together consistent team performances. Their lone finals appearance came in 2014, where they lost despite Wriddhiman Saha's brilliant hundred.

The pillars of KXIP over the years have been iconic Indian stars and big-hitting foreign players. A franchise that was carried by the cult status of Yuvraj Singh initially was later made famous by Virender Sehwag, Glenn Maxwell and David Miller's performances.

The latest iteration sees KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal and Chris Gayle take up starring roles; however, a misfiring bowling attack continues to be their bane.

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#1 DD: 4 seasons (IPL 2011, 2013, 2014, 2018)

The Delhi Capitals are looking to leave the ghosts of their past behind. [PC: iplt20.com]

Capitals or Daredevils? Given the dramatic transformation after the name change, let's imagine the precursor of the Delhi Capitals (DC) was an entirely different team. The franchise hit the lows in 2014 with a meagre 4 points to their name. Interestingly enough, DC finished top of the pile in 2009 and 2012, only to miss out on a finals appearance.

The likes of Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Zaheer Khan and Amit Mishra shouldered the franchise, wearing the badge through season after season of promising performances thrown away.

The current and far more successful iteration of DC features a mix of experienced and young India internationals in Shreyas Iyer, Shikhar Dhawan and Rishabh Pant among others. They will all hope to make at least their first finals appearance. Amit Mishra, one of their most seasoned campaigners, will hope to make the journey worthwhile even though he's been ruled out of IPL 2020 due to injury.