Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 is set to kickstart on 9 April 2021. The 8 team competition promises to be an intense affair. IPL 2021 auctions saw plenty of action with teams going for big-ticket players. The teams at the end of the auction seem pretty well balanced. Any team can beat the other on any given day and that is the beauty of IPL. IPL 2020 was one of the closest seasons ever contested. Mumbai Indians emerged runaway champions but the race to playoffs was a mighty close affair. IPL 2021 in that regard will be no different.

StumpsandBails predict the top 4 teams which will make the playoffs this season:

#1 Mumbai Indians

Mumbai Indians have been the team to beat in the IPL in the last couple of seasons. Their power-packed batting lineup has demolished bowling attacks. Their pace department saw a valuable addition in the form of Trent Boult last year. His partnership with Jasprit Bumrah was one of the main reasons why MI were able to defend their IPL title. The only weak link for MI is their spin department which wears a pretty thin look. But expect MI to come out all guns blazing. They will be gunning for a third successive title and make another IPL record.

#2 Royal Challengers Bangalore

Royal Challengers Bangalore made interesting purchases at the IPL auction. They certainly added the extra oomph to their squad by bringing in Glenn Maxwell and Kyle Jamieson. Maxwell is an X-factor player while Jamieson is an unknown quantity in the IPL. Dan Christian is a valuable addition to the setup who knows how to win big tournaments. RCB have a solid first playing XI with able backups. This year might be the year of RCB!

#3 Delhi Capitals

Delhi Capitals ran out of steam in the later stages of IPL 2020. It wasn’t looking good for them until the IPL 2021 player auctions. DC picked up Steve Smith to everyone’s surprise. They bought Umesh Yadav at his base price. These 2 players might just turn out to be the force DC needs to go all the way this season.

#4 Sunrisers Hyderabad

The Surfers Hyderabad franchise have built an all condition squad. They are especially effective in Indian conditions. SRH is the only team to have made it to the playoffs consecutively for the past 5 seasons. The addition of Kedar Jadhav might prove to be a masterstroke as he can shepherd SRH’s fragile middle order.