Unorthodox Irish batsman Eoin Morgan’s achievements will forever seem tainted by his switch to lucrative England to represent the Three Lions in international cricket.
 
After successful youth stints for Middlesex, Morgan made his ODI debut for Ireland in 2006 against Scotland but then switched to England ahead of the 2009 World Twenty20. He played his first game in English colours in 2009 against the West Indies in Bristol. An extended opportunity came in the 7-match ODI series at home against Australia, where he featured on six occasions with top-scores of 43 and 58, showcasing a penchant for the reverse sweep. He later represented England in the World Twenty20, playing a solitary game against the Netherlands. He continued to perform well in both formats, with ODI centuries against Bangladesh and Australia in 2010. The left-hander’s ability to finish an innings drew comparisons to Australian Michael Bevan.
 
After playing a crucial role in England’s World T20 success in 2010, Morgan was given his premier Test cap against touring Bangladesh. He retained his place to face Pakistan a month later, where he also scored his maiden Test hundred. Later, in 2011, he was appointed as Stuart Broad’s deputy in the T20 format. While many may doubt Moggie’s loyalty for turning against his home country, delving into a professional’s need to challenge himself with and against the best in the business, may render those doubts harsh.
 
With the sacking of Alastair Cook as the ODI captain close to the 2015 World Cup, the selectors trusted Eoin Morgan to take over and do the job. Eoin started well in the tri-series in Australia, involving the home team and India, but in spite of his individual good form, his team failed to win the final. England's misery didn't end there as they experienced a very poor World Cup where they won just two matches (against Scotland and Afghanistan) and failed to qualify for the quarter-final.
 
Post the 2015 World Cup debacle, Eoin Morgan decided to build a team with a fearless attitude. Many senior players were dropped and the team management invested in some young talents. Soon the results started to show and 'New England' under the able leadership of Eoin Morgan began to evolve. The revival was dramatic, to say the least, and in 2018 the Three Lions leapfrogged India to top World ODI Rankings for the first time in five years.
 
Known for his composure under pressure, Morgan earned the respect and confidence of his players. He gave the license to his boys to fearlessly express themselves and that fresh approach changed everything for the English cricket as far as the shorter versions of the game is concerned. From down in the dumps in 2015, England entered the 2019 Cricket World Cup as one of the favourites and that was the testament of Morgan's inspirational captaincy.
 
Eoin never let captaincy affect his batting. In fact, his batting average improved by leaps and bounds after taking over the reins. His ability as a batsman was never under doubt and his presence in the middle order allowed the top order to bat freely. In one of his knocks in the 2019 World Cup, Morgan smashed a 71-ball 148 against Afghanistan which included 17 sixes - a world record. 
 
Under Morgan's guidance and 'play fire with fire' approach, England scripted history by winning their maiden ODI World Cup title in 2019 and ended the 44-year long wait of a country that invented this beautiful game of cricket.

Eoin Morgan

The return to international cricket has not been great for South Africa. While their star players - Quinton de Kock, Faf du Plessis, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje - put up splendid individual performances during the 2020 IPL, playing as a unit along with an inexperienced core only took them to a 0-3 whitewash in the T20Is against England.Now, the start of the ODI series <a href="https://www.cricket.com/news/sa-eng-1st-odi-postponed-to-sunday-after-a-home-player-tests-positive-for-covid-1607078299540" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">was postponed&nbsp;</a>due to a positive COVID test in the South Africa squad, putting the remaining tour in jeopardy. In an occasional good news for the board, the remaining players, plus the management, <a href="https://www.cricket.com/news/south-africa-squad-returns-with-negative-covid-19-results-1607162282872" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">returned negative results</a> after a round of retesting which was done on Friday. The focus finally shifts to the ODIs.&nbsp;Though recent form in this format matters little for South Africa since they last played ODIs nine months ago, they will still yield confidence from a 3-0 series result against a competitive Australian side. Moreover, they found different match-winners in that series. Heinrich Klaasen, Jon-Jon Smuts and Janneman Malan were amongst the man-of-the-match award winners. Hence, the Quinton de Kock led side would like to feel that ODI cricket is currently their best format.&nbsp;They are also emboldened by the inclusion of Rassie van der Dussen, who did not play South Africa&rsquo;s previous ODI series but showed excellent form in the recently concluded T20Is. On the flip side, they will continue to miss Kagiso Rabada as the leader of their bowling attack.&nbsp;In the other camp, England have rested three players. Ben Stokes, Jofra Archer and Sam Curran were not picked to give them time away from the restrictions of the bio-bubble. However, the visitors are still the favorites for the series. Prior to the T20Is, Sam Billings said, &ldquo;This (England&rsquo;s white-ball setup) is the hardest sports team to get into in the world at the moment.&rdquo;&nbsp;While England&rsquo;s batting takes care of itself despite no Stokes, there may be a few holes in their pace attack in the absence of Archer and Sam Curran. Chris Woakes becomes the leader of the attack but others are short of ODI experience of late. Tom Curran has been given a long rope but has been ineffective. Reece Topley, coming from a long injury lay-off has played a solitary ODI this year while Mark Wood has featured in only two of them. Lewis Gregory, yet to earn an ODI cap is the only other option in the squad.&nbsp;This gives South Africa one area to exploit. De Kock, especially, did not get runs in the T20Is and will be waiting to explode. He has been South Africa&rsquo;s highest scorer in ODIs since 2018, accruing 1,329 runs. However, in du Plessis&rsquo; absence, who is rested from the first ODI, the responsibility will be on him to see the team through with the bat.Meanwhile, South Africa&rsquo;s bowling isn&rsquo;t foolproof itself. Without Rabada, the most experienced bowler in the squad is Andile Phehlukwayo with 27 ODI caps to date. Lungi Ngidi - 26 ODI caps - will be the leader of the bowling attack.&nbsp;Ngidi&rsquo;s numbers evoke mixed emotions. He was brilliant in leading the attack earlier this year, also picking his career-best figures of six for 58 against Australia. His overall numbers during the death overs read an impressive average of 10.7 for his 19 wickets while conceding only at 6.3 runs per over. Although, he has gone for runs in recent memory. His form went up and down in the 2020 IPL and he was carted for 51 runs in the second T20I at Paarl. Which Ngidi turns up in the first ODI will be crucial for South Africa. It also sets him up nicely against Jos Buttler.&nbsp;Probable XIsSouth Africa:Malan, Smuts, Klaasen, David Miller, Kyle Verreynne were amongst the runs when South Africa last appeared in ODIs. Klaasen was sick and absent from the last T20I, on Tuesday and might continue to stay away from the cricket field for a while. Rassie van der Dussen definitely takes a spot after an eye-catching 74 not out in the third T20I. Smuts provides the sixth bowling option. One amongst Temba Bavuma and Kyle Verreynne will take the spot vacated by du Plessis.&nbsp;Janneman Malan, Quinton de Kock (c/wk), JJ Smuts, Rassie van der Dussen, Temba Bavuma/Kyle Verreynne, David Miller, Andile Phehlukwayo, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Lutho Sipamla/Junior Dala, Tabraiz ShamsiEngland:The only thinking England need to do is regarding the number six spot. Do they continue with Sam Billings who has shown spark to take the spot in the longer run or do they go back to Moeen Ali to roll his arm over in Stokes&rsquo; absence? The fact that Root has bowled a fair bit this year works in Billings&rsquo; favour. Mark Wood did not feature in the T20Is and should be taking Archer&rsquo;s spot to intimidate the opposition with pace.&nbsp;Jason Roy, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Eoin Morgan (c), Jos Buttler (wk), Sam Billings, Chris Woakes, Tom Curran, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood, Reece Topley/Olly Stone

After struggling in T20Is, South Africa would be desperate to continue their good ODI form

Quinton de Kock

Eoin Joseph Gerard Morgan

Hendrik Erasmus van der Dussen

Samuel William Billings

Lungisani True-man Ngidi

England tour of South Africa, 2020

South Africa

England

A chance for South Africa to get back to winning ways

England one-day captain Eoin Morgan said that he would continue to make use of signals from the team balcony.Television coverage during the third Twenty20 international against South Africa at Newlands in Cape Town on Tuesday captured images of numbers and letters being displayed by video analyst Nathan Leamon.&quot;There&rsquo;s been no real signals,&quot; said Morgan.&nbsp;&quot;There has always been constant communication, verbal or physical, from the change room to us the field to help improve my decisions as captain and Jos Buttler&rsquo;s decisions as vice-captain,&rdquo; said Morgan.He said the England team did its research before a game and any signals were intended to show how the data might have changed during the match.&quot;It&rsquo;s something we&rsquo;ve used a lot pre-game and are now experimenting with in the game to see if we can improve our performance on the field.&quot;Morgan revealed that signals had been used in all three T20 matches.&quot;There weren&rsquo;t many decisions that varied from mine. I think there were three in the first game, two in the second and a couple in the third,&quot; said Morgan ahead of a three-match one-day series against South Africa, starting at Newlands on Friday.He said he believed the tactical innovation was &quot;100 per cent within the spirit of the game&quot;. &nbsp;It was previously reported that the England camp had cleared their plan to use signals with the match officials before the first match.&quot;We&rsquo;re definitely going to continue with it to give it enough sample size to see whether it improves our decision-making on the field,&quot; said Morgan.

The England one-day captain said that he would continue to make use of signals from the team balcony



Morgan defends use of signals from team balcony

Eoin Morgan termed England&rsquo;s performance &ldquo;pretty average&rdquo; despite a win in Cape Town. At Paarl, in the second T20I, he will be happier with the way things went, although England&rsquo;s batting was pushed to its limit in what was perceived to be an easy chase.&nbsp;England were tested as the only vulnerability of their star-studded batting line-up over the recent years have faced - slow pitches. Led by Tabraiz Shamsi&rsquo;s wrist-spin, South Africa squeezed England&rsquo;s innings during the middle-overs but were left undone by the ice-cold Dawid Malan and Eoin Morgan, who ensured another T20I series win for England with an unassailable 2-0 lead.&nbsp;At one point, the asking rate escalated to over 10 an over. England could not find any momentum until Morgan walked in at his new batting position - number six. He scored a six and a four in the 15th over against Lungi Ngidi providing some pump to the innings. He further carried it to the death overs. Malan, who was himself searching for rhythm until then, fed off the momentum created by Morgan, racing to a 39-ball fifty after being 29 off 31 balls at one stage.&nbsp;It was not an easy start for Malan. He walked out to bat when South Africa were pressing their foot forward and Jason Roy&rsquo;s struggle had indicated a tricky chase. He was struck on the chest by an Anrich Nortje bouncer which was recorded at 150-kph on the speedometer.To Morgan&rsquo;s credit, it was not a pitch to go after the bowling from the word go. But that is what his self-assigned new role in the team demands and the England captain flourished in it. His two boundaries against Ngidi in the 15th over brought about a much-needed change in momentum.&nbsp;It could also be a coincidence that it collided with the point when South Africa were done with their spinners, as they were the point of difference makers in both innings.&nbsp;<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F7a4153a785d87ca7e59919e74fcd387289a4d87d.png" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">England had only Adil Rashid. South Africa had two spinners - George Linde and Tabraiz Shamsi - who stagnated England&rsquo;s progress.&nbsp;South Africa began well with the ball but had only wicket in the Powerplay. In the middle-overs, Shamsi added wickets to South Africa&rsquo;s efforts by forcing England batsmen to make errors.&nbsp;Thudding the ball into Buttler&rsquo;s stumps in his first over, Shamsi reminded his nemesis from the tour opener, Jonny Bairstow about the large size of the boundary by getting him caught in the deep. In his last over, he added Ben Stokes to his tally. Given the proceedings, Quinton de Kock might regret not playing Jon-Jon Smuts.&nbsp;In a similar vein, Rashid also brought the South African innings to a complete standstill. Proteas had lost both openers in the Powerplay but with 50 runs on the board, they had enough hope to post a competitive with Reeza Hendricks and Faf du Plessis at the crease.&nbsp;Rashid snaffled both of them. Hendricks was beaten through a dreamy dip on the off-stump line while du Plessis was questioned on his half-hearted footwork with a pristine leg break.&nbsp;South Africa&rsquo;s innings never got any momentum after it. The 20-run stand between Rassie van der Dussen and Heinrich Klaasen from 23 balls was not helpful and the home side managed only 52 runs in the middle-overs.&nbsp;<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Fd9129942c8b532a314d04bfea3746b96d5ed090f.png" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Unlike Malan, van der Dussen never &lsquo;found his hands&rsquo; and trudged to an unbeaten knock of 25 from 29 balls, without a single boundary. A squandered opportunity to find the fence off a knee-height full toss in the last over underlined his travails.Surprisingly for South Africa, Linde, the bowling all-rounder at number seven seemed to be the most fluent batsman of the day. He contributed 25 to the Proteas&rsquo; 44 runs in the death with the help of two fours and a six. He did not pick any wickets but his economical spell coupled with a handful knock fetched him a perfect 10 on <a href="https://www.cricket.com/criclytics/198641/sa-vs-eng-2nd-t20i-england-tour-of-south-africa-2020/report-card" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Criclytics Report Card.</a>In the concluding phase of the game, Malan&rsquo;s dismissal, coming through an excellent catch by Hendricks at long-off, brought another opportunity for South Africa to choke England. However, an outside edge off Morgan&rsquo;s bat flew past de Kock reducing the deficit to 3 runs in the last over. Kagiso Rabada got Sam Curran to chop on to his stumps on the second ball but Jordan razed off the remainder with a ball to spare.

Tabraiz Shamsi took three key wickets during the middle-overs

Jonathan Marc Bairstow

Jofra Chioke Archer

Tabraiz Shamsi

George Fredrik Linde

Dawid Johannes Malan

Ice-cold Malan, Morgan take England to series win

England remain to be the better team on paper but South Africa will feel they did well to test them throughout the game. But ultimately, they would be disappointed not to cash in the opportunity to lead 1-0 in the series in Cape Town.&nbsp;It came down to lack of experience. Beuran Hendricks conceded 28 runs in the 17th over when South Africa had pulled things back with a couple of tight overs. Earlier, South Africa allowed only 34 runs in the Powerplay while cleaning England&rsquo;s top three. But then squandered 62 runs in five overs in the middle-phase to let the visitors roar back in the contest.&nbsp;Similarly, with the bat, South Africa might think they could have posted more than 180 given England&rsquo;s bowling was not at its best. Once again, the lower-order batting lacked experience after Rassie van der Dussen at number four.This has been South Africa&rsquo;s major issue. A major chunk of their star cricketers have retired and the transition period has not been kind to them. Either they have been blown away from very beginning in the game or they have failed to keep the pressure on the opposition.&nbsp;Now they have a relatively new coaching staff as well, aiming to build a side for the T20 World Cup next year.&nbsp;England, on the other hand, have completely different dynamics. They possess players who can stage come-from-behind victories as in the series opener. Their only problem is &nbsp;the problem of plenty with multiple people auditioning for one role.&nbsp;They have not lost a T20I series since July 2018 and seem on course to add another win to their tally on Sunday, when they will take on South Africa in the second T20I in Paarl.&nbsp;England&rsquo;s rejigged batting orderJonny Bairstow relished his new role in Cape Town. A renowned opener slotted at four, he took the chase by the scruff of its neck when the top three floundered. He recorded his best T20I score reigniting England&rsquo;s run chase.&nbsp;To accommodate Bairstow at four, Eoin Morgan has moved to six. It actually is a a great tactical move given Morgan&rsquo;s excellent strike-rate at the start of his innings.&nbsp;<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Ffcdf35c1ea76179bca95b1c75a990bb001278a6d.png" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Ben Stokes, who occupied the fifth spot in the batting order, has gone at a strike-rate of 114 in the first 10 balls of his innings in T20Is since 2018.South Africa&rsquo;s inconsistent bowling attackWhile England&rsquo;s rejigged batting order can only be an experiment for this series, it sets up brilliantly against South Africa. Since 2019, they have the highest economy rate at the death amongst Test playing nations - 10.3 runs per over. They are not great during the Powerplay either, going at 9.4 runs per over - again the highest amongst Test playing nations.&nbsp;Kagiso Rabada won the Purple Cap in IPL 2020 but his wicket-taking form for South Africa has gone through ups and downs. Hendricks has been preferred consistently because of his left-arm angle but turned out to be the weak link in Cape Town. Tabraiz Shamzi has been a regular feature for the Proteas over the last couple of years but has not sealed his spot yet.&nbsp;South Africa will need all their missing pieces to come together to shut England. George Linde&rsquo;s brilliant debut was the biggest positive for them in Cape Town.The new venueBoland Park in Paarl will be the 11th T20I venue in South Africa. Quinton de Kock missed the services of an extra restrictive spinner and asked Heinrich Klaasen to bowl. But the past record in T20 cricket at Boland Park suggests he won&rsquo;t face the same issue in the second T20I.&nbsp;In T20s since 2019 in Paarl, spinners have picked only 35 percent of the wickets. Pacers have trumped their spin counterparts even in the middle-overs - a phase where spinners are expected to be dominant.&nbsp;<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F81ca9e11c8703066399f0918bbe19a8b82ee6336.png" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Overall, the track at Paarl tends to be flat and another high-scoring game can be expected.&nbsp;Probable XIsSouth Africa:After failing to defend 180, Anrich Nortje is expected to play with the series on line. There are also question marks on de Kock&rsquo;s opening partner. Temba Bavuma might get another chance. An inclusion for Jon-Jon Smuts could also be on cards given if he can roll his arm over if required.&nbsp;Quinton de Kock (c/wk), Temba Bavuma, Faf du Plessis, Rassie van der Dussen, Heinrich Klaasen, Pite van Biljon/Jon-Jon Smuts, George Linde, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi, Tabraiz Shamsi&nbsp;England:The only change in England&rsquo;s XI could be a game for Mark Wood at the cost of Tom Curran. Although, Curran picked two for 14 in the intra-squad warm-up T20 game in Paarl which may work in his favor to get another chance.&nbsp;Jason Roy, Jos Buttler (wk), Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan (c), Sam Curran, Jofra Archer, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Mark Wood/Tom Curran

The contest will be the first T20I in Paarl

Francois du Plessis

South Africa aim to fill holes with series on the line

South Africa are set to play three Twenty20 Internationals against England, starting Friday (November 27) in Cape Town, and the series would serve as a perfect platform for the home team to get their act together and build a side for next year&#39;s T20 World Cup.The Proteas made quite a few changes in their team management last season, but things haven&#39;t quite gone in their favour as they would have expected. There are hardly five-six players who are certain starters in South Africa&#39;s T20I XI, and there are number of spots still up for grabs. Meanwhile, England are a much better and settled side but they have got a few problems of their own too.ENGLAND&#39;S TOP-ORDER CONUNDRUMJason Roy, Jos Buttler, Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow and Ben Stokes - England have five batsmen in their XI who prefer batting in the top-order (1-3) and the team management will have to find a way to ensure this &quot;problem of plenty&quot; doesn&#39;t hurt them in the long run. Stokes produced good numbers while opening the innings for Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2020, while Buttler was given the finisher&#39;s role. England head coach Chris Silverwood however has already indicated that they would stick with the opening combination of Roy and Buttler.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Faefc6b3c29ea59487222553ba0412619ac912634.png" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Meanwhile, the top-ranked T20I batsman Malan and Stokes have a tendency to start slowly before exploding in the second half of their innings and England will have to adjust them accordingly. Then there is Bairstow who is likely to get sandwiched between these two, which means skipper Eoin Morgan could see himself batting at No. 6. The left-hander has a strike rate of 215.5 in T20s in the last five overs of an innings since 2019, which is the second-most after AB de Villiers&#39; 218.3 (minimum 100 balls faced), which means he could see himself fit into that role perfectly. &nbsp;PACE, PACE, PACE... BUT, WHAT ABOUT SPIN?Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Jofra Archer and Mark Wood have the ability to bowl at around 150kmph and you would expect these four to play a significant role in the series. Wood didn&#39;t play the IPL but the rest three were superb for their respective franchises. Rabada and Nortje formed a lethal combination for the runners-up Delhi Capitals, while Archer was named the Most Valuable Player of the season despite his team Rajasthan Royals finishing at the bottom of the points table.It&#39;s not just these four, both South Africa and England have enough depth in their pace department. While the Proteas have Lungi Ngidi, Lutho Sipamla, Beuran Hendricks, Junior Dala and Glenton Stuurman in their set-up, England too could rely on the likes of Reece Topley, Chris Jordan and Tom Curran to do the job if and when needed. On top of that, both sides have some outstanding seam-bowling allrounders, but don&#39;t have quality backups in the spin department.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Fa03418dc951dd314d1a188f4160725f360e2e140.jpg" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">The next T20 World Cup will be held in India and both South Africa and England would want to have a backup ready for Tabraiz Shamsi and Adil Rashid respectively. The only backup England have for Rashid is Moeen Ali but the spin-bowling allrounder hasn&#39;t been used much in the nine T20Is he has played this year. Meanwhile, South Africa have three left-arm spinners - Keshav Maharaj, Bjorn Fortuin and George Linde - in their squad and you would expect to see all of them at some point in the T20I and ODI series. &nbsp;PROTEAS NEED TO GET THEIR ACT RIGHT ASAPThere are lots of uncertainties in the South African batting order. Apart from Quinton de Kock, not a single South African batsman has a confirmed batting spot. Temba Bavuma did well as an opener against England but was ruled out of the Australia series because of an injury. The hosts have two other options in Reeza Hendricks and Janneman Malan, but they could stick with Rassie van der Dussen who opened the innings in two of the three T20Is against Australia in February.Faf du Plessis did well for Chennai Super Kings as an opener but he is most likely to bat at No. 3 and batting him lower than that would make no sense. Meanwhile, three of David Miller, Jon-Jon Smuts, Heinrich Klaasen, Kyle Verreynne and Pite van Biljon are going to play in the middle-order. Someone like Smuts could give them a few overs of spin, while they could also add someone like Linde who could chip in with both bat and ball and is a proper allrounder.PROBABLE XIsSouth Africa:&nbsp;Quinton de Kock (c &amp; wk), Rassie van der Dussen, Faf du Plessis, JJ Smuts, David Miller, Heinrich Klaasen/Kyle Verreynne, Andile Phehlukwayo, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Lungi Ngidi/Beuran Hendricks/George Linde, Tabraiz Shamsi. &nbsp;England: Jason Roy, Jos Buttler (wk), Dawid Malan, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, Eoin Morgan (c), Moeen Ali/Sam Curran, Chris Jordan, Adil Rashid, Jofra Archer, Tom Curran/Mark Wood.

There are number of spots still up for grabs in the South African batting order, while England are much more settled

Problem of plenty for England, and plenty of problems for SA

The buildup to England&#39;s cricket series in South Africa included coronavirus tests, bio-bubbles and quarantines. That&#39;s a given nowadays for sports that involve international travel. England captain Eoin Morgan was even quizzed Thursday, on the eve of the first Twenty20 match, as to when cricketers should expect to get virus vaccines. &quot;I think we&#39;re well down the pecking order of people who should be prioritized,&quot; he said, smartly.Amid all that, the two teams have also had to anguish over whether to take the knee for the Black Lives Matter movement at Friday&#39;s opening game, and what message it might send after both sets of players decided not to. Both teams reiterated their support for the BLM movement but said for this occasion they&#39;d be wearing black armbands in the T20 game at Newlands in a mark of respect for those affected by the coronavirus. The armbands would also be for a current campaign in South Africa raising awareness about violence against women.The teams also realize they&#39;re both playing to inspire some kind of positive sentiment in their home countries for yet more reasons. England is witnessing a second wave of the virus and is in lockdown. &quot;I think as a sportsperson, an international sportsperson, there are very few times that you play sport or contribute to things when people really need it, Morgan said.&quot;Given the circumstances and how bad they still are (in Britain) ... it&#39;s important for us to go out there and put on a bit of a show,&quot; he added.South Africa is playing for the first time since the virus outbreak, and after South African cricket was brought to its knees this year not by the pandemic-enforced lack of action, but by allegations of mismanagement and corruption in the national governing body that shredded the sport&#39;s reputation.&quot;South African cricket is being run currently by an interim board after the organization&#39;s entire leadership resigned over the last few months. The guys are very keen to play, South Africa captain Quinton de Kock said. It&#39;s been a while since we played for the Proteas and I think the guys are ready to go and change what&#39;s been going on around cricket in South Africa.For a series that was hastily arranged with a view to just getting back to playing some cricket, it&#39;s become about everything else too. Just for good measure, two South African players tested positive for the virus in the buildup, one of them in the secure bio-bubble that both teams are locked in at the same Cape Town hotel. If any of the home team&#39;s latest batch of tests for COVID-19 come back positive, the series might, after all of this, be called off.It&#39;s another stressful 24 hours for us, said South Africa team doctor Shuaib Manjra, who is possibly the busiest man of the tour so far. Preparing without distractions is an ideal situation,&quot; he said.&quot;Just focusing on cricket, on your game, going to training and coming back. But in the real world you always have distractions. Was our preparation ideal? You would say we&#39;ve had a couple of hiccups. All smooth for England, which has had no positive COVID-19 tests since arriving in Cape Town on a chartered flight for its first overseas tour since the virus outbreak.England&#39;s last game in South Africa was only in February, but that was another, pre-virus era. Then, stadiums were full of fans, the atmosphere was party-like and players weren&#39;t confined to a hotel and only allowed to leave to go to training or matches. South Africa fast bowler Kagiso Rabada has called the hotel for this series a luxury prison, Dr. Manjra said. It&#39;s South Africa&#39;s first time in a bio-bubble as a national team and for some players, their first time quarantined at all.&nbsp;In terms of COVID-19 protocols, England has more experience having done this all through the multiple series they played at home in their summer. The only time England players have felt unsettled on this tour, Morgan said, is at practice when their lineup of big-hitting batsmen have been smashing balls all over the place, putting everyone else in peril. It&#39;s been dangerous, Morgan said. No fans will be in danger on Friday with no spectators allowed for the series which has three T20s and three one-day internationals.&nbsp;

South Africa are playing for the first time since the virus outbreak

It's important for us to go out there and put on bit of a show: Morgan

Tactics form an important part of any team sport. Given the shorter length of a T20 game, gaining an early advantage is key, making tactics more important in cricket than ever before. Coming to the field well-prepared now means turning up with a good game plan. The 2020 Indian Premier League saw such ploys in abundance. Some were good, but some turned out to be atrociously bad.Here, we look at some tactical blunders which went on to cost the teams that employed them. Not to forget, a lot of these tactics are framed by the coaches of the respective sides rather than the captains.&nbsp;The demotion of AB de Villiers&nbsp;It has become a common consensus in the IPL that AB de Villiers struggles against leg-spinners. Across the 2018 and 2019 seasons of the IPL, he averaged 26 while striking at 128.4 against them, which one might say is below par going by his abilities.&nbsp;Kings XI Punjab took note of these numbers. In both their games against RCB, they deployed both their leggies, Ravi Bishnoi and Murugan Ashwin. It was enough to unsettle Royal Challengers Bangalore.&nbsp;In <a href="https://www.cricket.com/match-score/197718/summary/rcb-vs-kxip-match-31-indian-premier-league-2020" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Match 31</a>, AB de Villiers was slated to bat at four as usual. RCB lost the first two wickets by the seventh over. Instead of de Villiers, in walked Washington Sundar. Up to an extent, Sundar&rsquo;s promotion seemed logical. It ensured a right-left batting combination to counter the leg-spin duo. Also, RCB had not enjoyed Kohli and de Villiers batting together too soon in the innings. It has often restricted both from playing freely in order to ensure at least one of them bat through.&nbsp;However, Sundar and Kohli added only 24 runs for the third wicket in 24 balls. Sundar kept running into the off-spinner, Glenn Maxwell. Kohli contributed only 11 off 10 balls. Having batted till the 11th over, Sundar had set the stage for de Villiers. But, RCB took everyone by surprise by further pushing de Villiers down to number six. Shivam Dube was promoted over him.While the 11th over was the perfect stage for de Villiers to walk in, his entry was delayed until the 17th over. As maverick as he is, expecting de Villiers to start striking it from ball one isn&rsquo;t fair. In T20s since 2019, de Villiers has a strike rate of 124.9 in the first 10 balls of his innings while it escalates to 160.1 over the next 10 deliveries. He did not have the cushion of those first 10 balls and perished for 2 in a failed attempt to find the fence. Not to forget, de Villiers had hammered a match-winning 73 in the previous match on the same ground. On this occasion, RCB wasted their best batsman and lost the game on the last ball of KXIP&rsquo;s run-chase.&nbsp;Unadkat bowling the 19th over<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Fab8173d3cd420b4ced50821b22905ed641a73af3.jpg" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200"> Another common knowledge in T20 cricket suggests that while defending a total, one should bowl their best bowler in the penultimate over. RCB needed 35 with two overs in hand and Rajasthan Royals skipper Steve Smith handed the ball to Jaydev Unadkat instead of opting for Jofra Archer.&nbsp;Unadkat was carted for a six off each of the first three deliveries by de Villiers, bringing the deficit down to 17 from nine balls. A delivery later, Gurkeerat Singh Mann collected a four. There were 25 runs from the over. Criclytics underlined it as a <a href="https://www.cricket.com/criclytics/197720/rr-vs-rcb-match-33-indian-premier-league-2020/game-changing-overs" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">match-changing over</a> which brought RR&rsquo;s win percentage down by 45 percent.&nbsp;Archer was the Most Valuable Player of the tournament but defending 10 runs in the last over against a rampaging de Villiers is tough even for the world&rsquo;s best. After the defeat, Smith said Unadkat was given the leeway of a longer boundary on the leg-side. In any case, had Archer bowled the 19th over, the story could have been different.Nitish Rana bowling the 10th overDefending 173 in a<a href="https://www.cricket.com/match-score/197736/summary/csk-vs-kkr-match-49-indian-premier-league-2020" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank"> must-win game against Chennai Super Kings</a>, Kolkata Knight Riders had a firm grip on the game until a moment of inexplicable decision-making. CSK were 58 for one in nine overs when Eoin Morgan decided to use the part-time off-break of Nitish Rana.&nbsp;There was no need to bowl Rana, especially that soon. The run-rate was well under KKR&rsquo;s control, there were two right-handers at the crease - Ambati Rayudu and Ruturaj Gaikwad - and the pitch had not shown any signs of helping spinners extravagantly. Moreover, Rayudu was only five balls into his innings. If anything, it was an opportunity for Morgan to bring his strike bowler on.However, he opted for Rana which permitted freedom to Rayudu early in his innings. The right-hander scored a boundary off each of his first three balls in the over, providing impetus to the innings. The 16-run over opened the floodgates and CSK raced to 100 by the end of the 12th over. CSK completed the run-chase off the last delivery of the game. KKR won their next game but fell short of a spot in the playoffs due to net run-rate.&nbsp;RCB feeding Pollard with leg-spinners<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F72608baa371aa35dbe76ac5cffb86285cd686d7b.jpg" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Kieron Pollard has a strange relationship with leg-spinners. In T20s from 2018 until Match 9 of IPL 2020, he had a strike rate of 128 against leg-spinners in the first 15 overs of the innings.&nbsp;In the last five overs, however, it skyrockets to 201.4. Conclusion - do not bowl leg-spin to Pollard at the death.&nbsp;In <a href="https://www.cricket.com/match-score/197697/summary/rcb-vs-mi-match-10-indian-premier-league-2020" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Match 10</a>, though, RCB skipper Kohli fed the Trinidadian with back-to-back overs of leg-spin, against Adam Zampa and Yuzvendra Chahal (17th and 18th over in the innings). Facing 10 of those 12 deliveries, Pollard hammered 42 runs. Ishan Kishan scored seven from the remaining two deliveries, producing 49 runs from those two overs. Mumbai Indians, after being well behind the eight ball for about 35 overs of the customary 40 in the game, were back in the contest and went as far as taking the game to a Super Over. &nbsp;Moreover, there was no riposte by RCB to Pollard&rsquo;s power-hitting. All those 12 deliveries were flat and failed attempts at bowling leg-breaks without the variation of an arm-ball or a googly.&nbsp;KKR delaying Ferguson till the 12th overWhen Chris Gayle is in and you want to get him out early, spinners are definitely not the way to do that. Since 2018, Gayle has been dismissed early (equal to or less than 10 balls in the innings) 28 times out of which pacers have accounted for his departure on 23 occasions.&nbsp;But KKR, in <a href="https://www.cricket.com/match-score/197733/summary/kkr-vs-kxip-match-46-indian-premier-league-2020" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Match 46</a>, had different ideas. When Gayle arrived at number three in a run-chase of 149, KKR were building a platform to strangle KXIP. Gayle arrived at the start of the ninth over which was a perfect moment for KKR to unleash Lockie Ferguson. They had been using Ferguson in the seventh over in the three matches he had played earlier. In this game, they delayed his arrival to the 12th over. They did not use Pat Cummins either.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Fbe8cb9acf91353574088b487ae7aa6ca71b7c15c.jpg" style="width: 600px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Instead, they went for the mystery spin of Sunil Narine and Varun Chakravarthy. Gayle had struggled to score against mystery spin before, but it was a different story on the small outfield of Sharjah. He used the three-over spell between Narine and Chakravarthy to get his eye in as well as to score runs. He smoked three sixes and by the time Ferguson arrived, he had already raced to 20 off nine balls.&nbsp;In a small run-chase, this brief burst was enough to hand an advantage to KXIP. Gayle carried on to score a match-winning 51 (29 balls) as KKR were left wondering &ldquo;what if&rdquo; they had attacked the big man with either Cummins or Ferguson earlier.Gowtham bowling the last over against MIKXIP were both mediocre and brilliant in terms of tactics in IPL 2020. They exploited the match-ups efficiently but failed to field a proper XI in many games. <a href="https://www.cricket.com/match-score/197700/summary/kxip-vs-mi-match-13-indian-premier-league-2020" rel="noopener noreferrer" target="_blank">Match 13</a> was a prime example of the latter. It was their first match after conceding a total of 223 against RR in Sharjah. That game accentuated that Sheldon Cottrell was not a death bowler.&nbsp;Hence, KXIP finished his quota by the 13th over. This left them with only two pacers for the last five - James Neesham and Mohammed Shami, both of whom were yet to do something substantial in that phase. With two overs left each, they bowled the four overs from the 16th to the 19th and conceded 64 runs between them. It was evident that KXIP would have no option but to use Krishnappa Gowtham&rsquo;s innocuous off-breaks in the 20th over.Gowtham conceded four sixes in the over. One cannot blame him as he should not have been bowling that over. It generally goes to one of the top bowlers in the side. However, KXIP had no one skilled enough to do the job in their XI and further miscalculated to stay content with Gowtham in the 20th over. Those last five overs - 89 runs - took the game away from KXIP as MI reached 191 and won the match comfortably.&nbsp;

We look at some tactical blunders which went on to cost the teams in IPL 2020

Virat Kohli

Sunil Philip Narine

Lachlan Hammond Ferguson

Christopher Henry Gayle

Kieron Adrian Pollard

Steven Peter Devereux Smith

Kannaur Lokesh Rahul

Krishnappa Gowtham

Ambati Thirupathi Rayudu

Nitish Rana

Jaydev Dipakbhai Unadkat

Abraham Benjamin de Villiers

Yuzvendra Singh Chahal

Adam Zampa

Indian Premier League, 2020

Rajasthan Royals

Royal Challengers Bangalore

Kolkata Knight Riders

Kings XI Punjab

Top tactical blunders in IPL 2020

It&#39;s not easy to be an overseas player in the Indian Premier League. These are the players who are paid big bucks and the franchise expects them to deliver almost every single time. On top of that, there are only four spots available in the playing XI and as a foreign player, you always have to be on your toes. Despite all the pressure, there have been many overseas stars in the past and present who have made their presence felt in the lucrative T20 league, and this year was no different.Mumbai Indians won the title for the fifth time and the likes of Quinton de Kock, Kieron Pollard and Trent Boult played massive roles in that. Then there were batsmen like AB de Villiers, Eoin Morgan, Chris Gayle and a few more who lit up the 13th edition of the tournament with their destructive batting. Meanwhile, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Jofra Archer, Trent Boult and few others hunted batsmen with their pace and swing.So, let&#39;s try to form a playing XI out of overseas players who did well for their respective franchises in the 2020 edition.David Warner (captain)The dynamic opener from Australia has arguably been the best overseas batsman in the history of the tournament. This year, Warner scored 548 runs at an average of 39.14 and a strike rate of 134.6, it was his sixth successive season with 500+ runs in the IPL. The left-hander played a conservative brand of cricket in the first half of the tournament and despite scoring runs, Warner looked far from his best.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Fadf74ad6ca12a5207b6ee8b5388e84f8fe3c763b.png" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Warner however changed his approach in the second half and played a huge role in propelling Sunrisers Hyderabad to the playoffs. He formed an outstanding opening combination with Wriddhiman Saha and helped Hyderabad win four games in a row. Warner is someone who scores on a consistent basis and that&#39;s exactly what you want from your star opener.Quinton de Kock (wicketkeeper)The wicketkeeper-batsman from South Africa has now played a massive role in two IPL titles for Mumbai Indians. Since joining the franchise in 2019, de Kock has scored 500+ runs in two consecutive seasons, with MI finishing as the champions both times.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Fe6411d3c720cca099aeb9dbf6edc2e35c0697276.jpg" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">In IPL 2020, the left-hander scored 503 runs at an average of 35.93 and a strike rate of 140.5. His quick starts at the top of the innings were pivotal to MI&rsquo;s success this year, with no-one scoring more runs than him (309) during the Powerplay in the tournament. No batsman hit more boundaries than de Kock (45) between overs 1-6 during IPL 2020 either. With Warner at the other end, de Kock would have the option of going berserk from the word go.AB de VilliersDe Villiers might have retired from international cricket more than a couple of years ago, but that doesn&rsquo;t seem to have lowered his prowess on a cricket field. In IPL 2020, he scored 454 runs at an average of 45.4 and a phenomenal strike rate of 158.7, hitting as many as 23 sixes along the way.The South African was crucial to Royal Challengers Bangalore&rsquo;s run to the playoffs. In fact, out of the seven matches that RCB won in IPL 2020, he scored 50+ in four and was the Player of the Match in three. If not for his stunning performances, Bangalore might have had to endure another season outside the top four. Considering the middle-order this team has, de Villiers could bat more freely and the No. 3 spot would give him ample time to wreak maximum havoc.Eoin MorganThe World Cup-winning captain mostly batted at No. 5 and 6 for Kolkata Knight Riders and despite that managed to emerge as their second-highest run-getter. The left-hander smashed 418 runs in 14 innings at an average of 41.80 and a strike rate of 138.41. Morgan brought that much-required calm presence in the middle-order and finished quite a few games for Kolkata. The 34-year-old is versatile and could easily bat at No. 4 from where he could dictate terms and play according to the situation or what the team demands.Marcus StoinisThe big man from Australia has been a part of the IPL for a few seasons now, but in no previous edition did he look like a world-beater. Hence, it was no surprise to see Bangalore releasing him ahead of the 2020 auction. In hindsight, you wonder if they have regrets about that decision after watching Stoinis star for Delhi this season. The all-rounder scored 352 runs and took 13 wickets in the recently-concluded edition of the IPL.He was the only player this season to finish with 350+ runs and 10+ wickets. The most impressive aspect of Stoinis&rsquo; game was his batting strike rate of 148.5, easily his best in an IPL season. Stoinis could bat at any position and you could also get a couple of overs out of him if needed.Kieron Pollard<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Ffa21e4e7d3d77694a7decc8ca04451328d524b7e.jpg" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">When it comes to causing chaos in the last few overs, there aren&#39;t many better than Pollard. The Mumbai stalwart scored 268 runs at a strike rate of 191.4, the best this season, and also took four wickets. He didn&#39;t get much chance to bat this season and not once played more than 25 deliveries. Pollard was only dismissed five times in 12 innings and ended the season with an average of 53.6. Pollard smoked quite a few fiery match-winning cameos and you need a player of his caliber down the order.Sam CurranThe all-rounder from England did well in an under-performing team, taking 13 wickets and scoring 186 runs in what was a disappointing season for the Chennai Super Kings. Chennai failed to make it to the playoffs for the first time but Curran for sure made a solid impression. Apart from a couple of blistering cameos, Curran also scored a gritty fifty against Mumbai in the league stage. He also did a decent job with the ball in hand and is going to be a vital part of Chennai&#39;s revamp next season. He can bat, he can bowl and that&#39;s exactly what you need from your No. 7.Rashid KhanRashid has conceded less than seven runs per over in every edition of the IPL that he has played in yet. In IPL 2020, he had his best season yet, with regards to the economy rate. The Sunrisers Hyderabad legspinner was as miserly as ever this season, conceding just 5.4 runs per over &ndash; the best by far by any bowler. By keeping the scoring rate of the opposition down in the middle-overs, Rashid played a huge role in guiding his team to the playoffs.He was also among the top wicket-takers in IPL 2020, with 20 scalps. Yuzvendra Chahal (21) was the only spinner to take more. The oppositions these days try to play him out but Rashid always finds a way to get wickets. The 22-year-old would fit in perfectly in this team and mostly operate in the middle overs (7-15).Jofra ArcherFor the first time ever, the Most Valuable Player in an IPL season was from the team that finished at the bottom of the table. But there could be a little argument here. Criclytics, our predictive cricket algorithm, also had the Rajasthan Royals pacer as the top player of the tournament.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F06ae9230aa498e2f629446b1594e27d824e3e3a5.jpg" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Archer took 20 wickets in IPL 2020 at a strike rate of 16.7. The most impressive part of his bowling, though, was how batsmen simply struggled to score against him. He ended the season with a dot ball percentage of 52.6, unsurprisingly the highest in the tournament. The right-arm paceman is someone who could bowl at any stage of the innings. The England cricketer also displayed his skills with the bat, hitting 10 sixes &ndash; one every 6.3 deliveries he faced.Kagiso RabadaDuring his three seasons in the IPL, you could say that the word &lsquo;wickets&rsquo; has been synonymous with Rabada. It was no surprise then that the Delhi Capitals pacer won the Purple Cap this time around after having narrowly missed out last season. In IPL 2020, Rabada took 30 wickets at a superb strike rate of 13.1 which helped Delhi reach the final for the first-ever time. 20 of those wickets came in the final five overs, the most by any bowler during that phase.The fast bowler took at least one wicket in his first 11 matches in the season, part of a run of 25 games in total across IPL seasons. In fact, considering a minimum of 25 wickets overall, no-one has a better bowling strike rate than Rabada (13.2) in IPL history.Trent BoultWhile Boult has had decent seasons in the past, never could you say that he was ever truly outstanding. After all, until IPL 2019, he had taken 38 wickets in 33 innings at an economy rate of 8.8. Hence, at the time, Delhi&rsquo;s call to let him go to Mumbai wasn&rsquo;t seen as an outrageous decision. In IPL 2020, though, Boult was magnificent, playing a huge role in Mumbai&#39;s title defence.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Fc69fb45a72273b5777fe754aa3ee0e639d1fb077.jpg" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">In total, he took 25 wickets at a strike rate of 13.8, but it was during the Powerplay where he made his mark. Between overs 1-6, he accounted for 16 dismissals in IPL 2020, six more than the second-best. He was the Player of the Match in the final, which was the icing on the cake. With Rabada and Archer in the team, you could simply bowl all of Boult&#39;s four overs upfront and the left-arm seamer could win you games just with the new ball.

No Gayle, Buttler and du Plessis in the team that would be led by Warner

Kagiso Rabada

IPL 2020: Best Overseas XI

Kolkata Knight Riders finished fifth for the second season in a row and couldn&#39;t qualify for the playoffs despite having the same number of points (14) as Sunrisers Hyderabad and Royal Challengers Bangalore who finished third and fourth respectively. They suffered a couple of heavy defeats which affected their net run-rate (-0.214) to a large extent. Kolkata might have been in contention till the very last league-game but the two-time champions were way below-par this season. Their top players didn&#39;t perform and the mid-season captaincy change didn&#39;t help either.Let&#39;s look at what worked for KKR and what didn&#39;t.WHAT WORKED?Varun Chakravarthy was unarguably Kolkata&#39;s best player this season. The mystery spinner from Tamil Nadu was not just their leading wicket-taker (17) but was also had the best economy rate (6.84). He was the only KKR bowler with an economy of less than 7. Chakravarthy troubled quite a few world-class batsmen and even managed to keep Kuldeep Yadav out of the playing XI for most of the season. Both Kuldeep and Sunil Narine didn&#39;t have a great season and it was Chakravarthy who carried the spin department.The 29-year-old was the only bowler to pick a five-wicket haul in this edition and his performance earned him a maiden call-up to the India team as part of the T20I squad for the upcoming tour of Australia. Chakravarthy however has been ruled out of the tour because of an injury, but he for sure forced everyone to sit up and take notice.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F9b1e4e5f0775b95f5a324e6606862a84e7dd8730.png" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Eoin Morgan was underutilized this season, but despite that, the left-hander emerged as their second-highest run-scorer. Morgan smashed 418 runs at an average of 41.80 and a strike rate of 138.41. The World Cup-winning captain batted in the middle-order, mostly at No. 5 and 6, and played those game-changing cameos that gave his team those extra 15-20 runs in the death overs. In the last five overs, the left-hander smoked runs at a strike rate of 203.1, which was the fourth-best amongst batsmen who faced at least 50 deliveries in that phase.Dinesh Karthik, Andre Russell and Narine hardly contributed with the bat and it was Morgan who stepped up in most of the games. He was also handed over the captaincy after seven games but the 34-year-old couldn&#39;t inspire his team to the playoffs. Morgan is a phenomenal white-ball captain and he would be eager to stamp his authority in the next edition, both as captain and batsman.There were question marks raised over Shubman Gill&#39;s strike rate (117.96) but he gave Kolkata that much-required solidity up the order. The right-hander didn&#39;t score at a brisk pace but his role in the team was to give them stability, while the other batsmen were expected to bat around him and play those big shots. Gill played his part to an extent but it was the second half of the plan that didn&#39;t work out. The big-hitters struggled to get going and that made Gill&#39;s numbers look slightly below-par. Gill is only 21 and is going to serve KKR for many years. He would have surely gained a lot from batting with someone like Morgan, and if he could get that strike rate somewhere near 130, Gill could add a lot to his T20 resume.Kolkata (7.1) had the worst scoring rate in the first six overs. Gill did not score at a rapid pace, but neither did Narine, Rahul Tripathi and Nitish Rana. The latter two had their moments but were very inconsistent. KKR (23) lost the second-most number of wickets in the powerplay after Rajasthan Royals (29). &nbsp;WHAT WENT WRONG?Narine&nbsp;(2018 MVP) and Russell&nbsp;(2019 MVP) made minimal impact and that was the biggest reason why Kolkata couldn&#39;t qualify for the playoffs. The two have been KKR&#39;s biggest match-winners for years but this was simply not their season. Narine and Russell only played 10 games each and that affected the entire team balance which Kolkata couldn&#39;t get right till their very last game. Narine had to miss few games after being reported for suspected bowling action, while Russell was sidelined because of an injury.The ploy of using Narine as an opener didn&#39;t work either as the left-hander only managed 121 runs in 10 encounters. The only fifty he scored this season came against Delhi Capitals in which he came to bat at No. 5. Narine didn&#39;t contribute much with the ball either, picking up just five wickets at an economy of 7.94 - his worst in an IPL season. Meanwhile, Russell too averaged just 13 with the bat and couldn&#39;t finish games for his franchise like he has been doing for quite some time now.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2Fc8e00ed027ffa3e9fad30317126342718cc049c0.png" style="width: 800px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">This was Karthik&#39;s second-worst IPL in terms of numbers. The wicketkeeper-batsman only managed 169 runs in 14 innings at an average of just 14.08 and batted in every position between Nos. 3 and 6. The 35-year-old made a 29-ball 58 against Kings XI Punjab and that was his only major contribution with the bat.WHAT NEEDS TO BE FIXED?Kolkata need at least one experienced Indian pacer in their squad. The likes of Shivam Mavi, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Prasidh Krishna and Sandeep Warrier have been far from consistent. Meanwhile, Pat Cummins was decent but the Australian paceman didn&#39;t set the stage on fire. Lockie Ferguson only played five games but looked the most impressive despite being taken out for 54 runs in a must-win encounter against Chennai Super Kings.KKR desperately need a back-up for Russell. They could take some big calls ahead of the next season and could also let go of some big overseas players. They need some solid Indian players and even a back-up for Karthik.&nbsp;

KKR finished fifth on the points table and were below-par this season

Krishnakumar Dinesh Karthik

Andre Dwayne Russell

Russell and Narine fail to impress, and so do Kolkata

When the outcome of the IPL final on Tuesday night had become more or less evident, former England captain Michael Vaughan tweeted, `I reckon the @mipaltan would win the T20 World Cup&hellip;&rsquo;&rsquo;.Vaughan was being a tad facetious, but his tweet nonetheless highlighted just how strong and splendid Mumbai Indians had been throughout the tournament.Losing their first match to Chennai Super Kings, the defending champions moved swiftly into top gear, and fairly coasted into the final, with barely a hiccup here and there.Mumbai&rsquo;s worst defeat came against Sunrisers Hyderabad, in the last league match. On a massive surge which would take them into the playoffs, David Warner&rsquo;s team overwhelmed MI by 10 wickets.Worries that MI may have hit a roadblock, however, were dissipated in the next match when Delhi Capitals were summarily dismissed in the first qualifier by 57 runs. The two teams met again in the final, and the result was no less emphatic: this time Mumbai won by 5 wickets.In fact, Mumbai beat Delhi &ndash; the second-best team by common consensus &ndash; all four times they met in the tournament, which reflects the talent and ambition that drives the champion franchise.It would be unfair to deny DC kudos for reaching the final for the first time. The franchise has been through player upheavals a few times in the past, but in the past couple of seasons appeared to have settled down.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F195cee8966338bb2e1f012fbf46beeefafe74445.JPG" style="width: 900px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">The team was brimming with exceptional talent, overseas and desi (local), and showed the vigour of youth for the better part of the league stage before inexplicably losing momentum.By the time the league stage came to a close, DC were suffering from a crisis of confidence. Batsmen and bowlers who looked match-winners, suddenly put in sub-optimal performances.Having huffed and puffed their way into the playoffs, DC had one special moment beating overanxious Sunrisers in the second qualifier, but it seemed almost inevitable that they would be walloped by Mumbai, who had acquired a massive psychological stranglehold, in the final.Of the five matches Mumbai lost this season, two came in Super Over finishes, the one against Punjab Kings XI in fact going to two Super Overs. Losing these matches by a whisker dented Mumbai&rsquo;s win percentage a whit but did not diminish their overall superiority in the tournament.Neither the Orange not Purple caps came to a Mumbai player. But three of the top 10 run-getters in the tournament were from Mumbai (Ishan Kishan, Surya Kumar Yadav, Quinton de Kock). In batting strikes-rates are concerned, Kieron Pollard and Hardik Pandya were at no. 1 and no. 3 respectively.Among bowlers, Bumrah (27) and Boult (22) finished second and third in the wicket-takers list behind Rabada (30) and also barring Joffra Archer, had the best economy rates among fast bowlers and impressive strike-rates too.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F4ec3d66fcf41a8c293c6c824e968e3c93a4408ac.JPG" style="width: 900px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">Important as these individual stats are, it wasn&rsquo;t the recipe for Mumbai&rsquo;s success. Other teams too had outstanding performers &ndash; K L Rahul, Jofra Archer, Yuzvendra Chahal, Varun Chakravarthy &ndash; to name a few, but their teams lacked heft.Mumbai&rsquo;s collective effort was way too bigger than any other team in the tournament, and this came through clearly. Beyond those mentioned earlier, there were stellar performers in Quinton de Kock, Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma, the Pandya brothers, James Pattinson, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Rahul Chahar, Jayant Yadav and even Saurabh Tiwary.For every match, on any pitch and whatever the crisis, Mumbai found some player &ndash; in fact, usually a handful &ndash; to take them home. There was no total dependency on 2-3 players, as in most other sides.This is what made them a juggernaut in the tournament and provoked the tweet from Vaughan mentioned at the start. When you look back, there was no other team that matched them in talent, tactics and mental toughness.Let me turn to some other takeaways for me from this tournament:a) Batsmen win you games, bowlers win you tournaments: The four teams that made it to the playoffs all had some great batting talent, but even more terrific bowling attacks. In Mumbai&rsquo;s case, not only was the bowling most potent and versatile, but the batting also consistent, which separated them from the flock.b) Big ticket players are not a guarantee for success: Pat Cummins, Glen Maxwell, Aaron Finch, Ben Stokes, Jos Butler, Steven Smith, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shane Watson, Dwayne Bravo were among those who commanded huge price in the auctions but failed to live up to their high billing. Some Indian players too like Jaydev Unadkat, Dinesh Karthik belonged in this category.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F008bd9e2d08ae070361f7acc949f46c7349b17ff.JPG" style="width: 900px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">c) Overseas fast bowlers shone more than batsmen: Batsmen Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, AB de Villiers, Eoin Morgan, Faf du Plessis were successful, but fast bowlers stole the thunder. Rabada, Boult, Nortje, Chris Morris, Sam Curran actually provided more value for money than batsmen, which is a paradigm shift in the IPL.d) India&rsquo;s young guns came to the fore: Several young Indian players, batsmen and bowlers, grabbed attention: Ishan Kishan, Shubman Gill, Devdutt Padikkal, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rahul Chahar, Ravi Bishnoi, T Natarajan, Shivam Mavi, Varun Chakravarthy. This not only shows the richness of talent in India, but how the intense competition among Indian players is helping raise standards.<img src="https://s3.ap-south-1.amazonaws.com/image.cricket.com/temp%2F16ef1e6488ce9daba7c3cdc5df446f58c752df8d.JPG" style="width: 900px;" class="fr-fic fr-dib" data-code="200">e)&nbsp;Captaincy Matters: When T20 started, it was believed that captaincy and tactics would have a marginal role to play. As the format has evolved, leadership has become critical. When Rohit got injured, Pollard filled in the breach quite superbly, bringing all his experience into play. Over the years, Rohit&rsquo;s man-management and astute reading of match situations has contributed substantially to Mumbai&rsquo;s successes. He&rsquo;s aggressive, bold, conservative depending on the situation, but always proactive. In the final, Jayant Yadav was preferred to young leggie Chahar to test Delhi&rsquo;s left-handers. Yadav&rsquo;s dismissal of danger-man Shikhar Dhawan virtually sealed the fate of the match then itself. &nbsp;

Mumbai’s collective effort was way too bigger than any other team in the tournament, and this came through clearly