578Views

IPL 2020 was moving towards the final few games of the group stage and it seemed that only one spot was open for the competition. Second-placed Delhi Capitals, however, losing heavily at the weekend against Mumbai Indians and third-placed Royal Challengers Bangalore losing to Chennai have now opened gates for other teams to fight for not one but 3 spots, as the two teams lost some very crucial net run-rate points too.

As things stand, only Mumbai Indians have fixed their place in the playoffs of IPL this season while anything could happen for the other three spots. MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings, however, are out of contention as a team needs at least 14 points on the table to stand a chance of qualifying and they just fell short by a game’s margin.

Chennai spoiled the game for Punjab too as they needed to win their final game in order to qualify. Kolkata’s 60-run victory knocked out Rajasthan from the competition and despite several bad performances, Kolkata are in contention. Let’s see how many possibilities exist to look at who makes it to the playoffs and how.

Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer  ipl
Virat Kohli and Shreyas Iyer

Every Scenario will be keeping 2 games in the center. Match 1 between Delhi and Bangalore and Match 2 between Hyderabad and Mumbai. Following are the scenarios:

Scenario 1

Match 1: Delhi scores 160 and win by 21 runs or fewer, or chase down 161 in 17.3 or more overs.

Match 2: Hyderabad beat Mumbai.

This will lead to Delhi finishing in second place but a close game and any margin closer to the above-mentioned one will allow Bangalore to finish up with a higher net run rate than Kolkata. Here, if Hyderabad wins, Kolkata will be knocked out. The standings in this scenario would be 1. Mumbai Indians, 2. Delhi Capitals, 3. Sunrisers Hyderabad, 4. Royal Challengers Bangalore.

Scenario 2

Match 1: Delhi score 160 and win by at least 22 runs, or chase down 161 by 17.2 overs

Match 2: Hyderabad beat Mumbai.

This will still mean that Delhi finishes second but that will create problems for Bangalore. They will go below Kolkata and thus if Hyderabad wins on Tuesday, then Bangalore will be knocked out. The standings then will be 1. Mumbai Indians, 2.Delhi Capitals, 3. Sunrisers Hyderabad, 4. Kolkata Knight Riders.

Scenario 3

Match 1: Bangalore scores 160 and win by 18 runs or fewer, or chase down 161 in 18 or more overs.

Match 2: Hyderabad beat Mumbai Indians

Bangalore winning on Monday will help them move into second place with 16 points but if the margin is very fine, then Delhi will be above Kolkata on NRR. Here, a victory for Hyderabad on Tuesday will see Kolkata get knocked out.

The standings, in that case, will be 1. Mumbai Indians, 2. Royal Challengers Bangalore, 3. Sunrisers Hyderabad, 4. Delhi Capitals.

Scenario 4

Match 1: Bangalore score 160 and win by at least 19 runs, or chase down 161 in 17.5 overs

Match 2: Hyderabad beat Mumbai Indians

Here, this case will lead to Delhi Capitals falling below Kolkata and in that case, Kolkata will qualify. The standings would be 1. Mumbai Indians, 2. Royal Challengers Bangalore, 3. Sunrisers Hyderabad, 4. Kolkata Knight Riders.

Scenario 5

Match 1: Delhi beat Bangalore

Match 2: Mumbai beat Hyderabad

If this happens, Sunrisers will be eliminated and all the unqualified teams will finish on 12 points. This will lead to both Bangalore and Kolkata qualifying, with the third and fourth spots depending on the margin of the result of Monday’s game. The standings would be 1. Mumbai Indians, 2. Delhi Capitals, 3 and 4. Kolkata and Bangalore.

Scenario 6

Match 1: Bangalore beat Delhi Capitals

Match 2: Mumbai beat Hyderabad

If Bangalore win on Monday and Sunrisers lose on Tuesday, then Kolkata and Delhi will take the third and fourth place, with their positions with respect to the result of Monday’s game. In the case of the last two scenarios, the standings will be the same as they were at the 50% completion stage of the competition. The top four standings then were 1. Mumbai Indians, 2. Royal Challengers Bangalore, 3, and 4. Kolkata and Delhi Capitals.