Table of Contents
Brad Hogg, the former Australian cricketer, has predicted the team which will finish last in the points table of the 2020 edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).
Out of the eight franchises which would participate in the tournament, Hogg went on to pick Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) as the team which would finish at the bottom the points table.
Even after releasing stalwarts like Aaron Finch and Ravichandran Ashwin, KXIP has come up with a strong unit on paper this year.
The overseas contingent in the KXIP side boasts the likes of Glenn Maxwell, Sheldon Cottrell, Mujeeb-ur Rahman, Chris Jordan, Jimmy Neesham, Nicholas Pooran, and Hardus Viljoen.
The Indian stars in the KXIP squad feature KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Mohammad Shami, Krishnappa Gowtham and Karun Nair.
Hogg tags Gayle, Maxwell and Neesham ‘inconsistent’
Ex-Kolkata Knight Rider, Hogg, has reckoned that the KXIP’s overseas contingent is ‘highly inconsistent’, which would be the reason for them to finish at the bottom.
“For me their overseas player contingent is all match-winners apart from Rahman from Afghanistan and Jordan. Those two have specific roles in this particular team and are quality bowlers,” Hogg said on his YouTube channel.
“But the other guys there like Maxwell, Gayle and Neesham, they just have the odd standout games, they are not very consistent with what you want from an overseas player. They are too much up and down. That’s why Kings XI are going to finish last,” he added.
KXIP is one of the only three teams to have participated in all twelve editions of the IPL, without clinching the trophy. The other two franchises being Delhi Capitals (DC) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
Punjab finished last in the points table during the IPL editions of 2010, 2015 and 2016. This time around, the Preity Zinta co-owned franchise will expect a successful campaign after appointing Anil Kumble as the head coach.
Kumble will be assisted by an elite support staff featuring Andy Flower, Jonty Rhodes and Wasim Jaffer.
