LPL : Colombo Kings Preview – Best XI, Critical factors & Prediction

November 25, 2020 at 8:41 PM

by Dileepa Peiris

Preview

Following the draft, Colombo Kings looked the best squad on paper. Experience local stars, international T20 specialists and a balanced squad makes them a front runner for the LPL 2020 Title.

Best XI

  1. Daniel Bell-Drummond*
  2. Dinesh Chandimal (wk)
  3. Laurie Evans*
  4. Angelo Mathews (C)
  5. Ashan Priyanjan
  6. Andre Russel*
  7. Isuru Udana
  8. Qais Ahmad*
  9. Amila Aponso
  10. Dushmantha Chameera
  11. Jeffrey Vandersay

Kings have their whole squad in place to start with their best XI. The playing XI looks settled, where the only probable change could be to bring in Tharindu Kaushal in place of Amila Aponso.

Batting

Kings’ top order is solid with the likes of Bell-Drummond, Chandimal & Evans in top form in recent tournaments. The experience of local super star Angelo Mathews & international T20 icon Andre Russel makes the middle order one of the best in the tournament. Further strengthening the batting line up is Ashan Priyanjan, who has international exposure and has been in top from in recent domestic tournaments.

Kings’ have the best rating when it comes to batting fire power with Bell-Drummond, Evans, Mathews, Russel & Udana capable of taking any bowling attack to the cleaners on their day.

Bowling

Kings’ bowling options are comparatively leaner, mainly due to the lack of depth in their pace and spin bowling options. A lot will depend on Chameera, Udana, Russel and Mathews in the pace department, while Qias Ahmed will be the key, as both Vandersay and Aponso hasn’t been consistent in the international scene.

But Kings’ possess the best death bowling attack with Russel, Udana & Mathews capable of keeping things in control. Their experience will come in handy during crunch matches.

Local Stars

With the likes of Mathews, Udana & Chandimal, who are experienced in the international stage, and likes of Priyanjan & Aponso bringing experience from the local scene, Kings’ possess some of the most experienced local stars. Maintaining consistency will be a challenge but their experience will help them given that some of the other squads have major maps. Not a lot of local super stars brings the X-Factor (the ability to change the game) with only Mathews & Udana could change the course of a game.

International Stars

Kings’ are blessed with the T20 super stars such as Russel, Bell-Drummond, Evans & Qais Ahmed bringing in experience, as well as form to the tournament. They’ve all been consistent in recent times (even though Russel didn’t have the best of IPLs). They all bring the X-Factor and could change the game at any given time.

Tournament is critical for…

Dinesh Chandimal- After a lean run in the international scene, Chandimal has been in form in the recent domestic premier league & Army Commander’s T20 league. He will be hoping to make a come back to the international T20 scene again with a set of consistent, solid performances in the LPL 2020.

Dushmantha Chameera– Known for his raw pace, Chameera has struggled in recent time due to a continuous run of injuries. And exciting fast bowling prospect, Chameera will be hoping to put up some good performances with the ball to prove his worth for Sri Lanka seletion.

Critical Success Factors

  • Top 3 with the bat- to provide explosive starts and set a solid foundation for the likes of Mathews, Russel & Udana to come in and take the game away from the opposition
  • Mighty middle & lower middle order- Mathews, Russel & Udana to finish the inning with a bang
  • Death bowling, when defending as well as controlling oppositions in latter stages
  • Toss might be critical for Kings, as given their strengths, they would prefer to chase than defend

IPL Comparator

Chennai Super Kings– Big names with experience and skills

Tournament Prediction

  • Best Ranking- 1
  • Worst Ranking- 3

Kings will be disappointed if they don’t make the Final, given their depth of skills and experience.

Will their experience take them to the LPL 2020 title?

  About the Author

Dileepa Peiris is an ardent Cricket fan and has a keen interest for cricket analytics. Having come from a Management Consulting background, Dileepa is currently employed at a Technology giant in Singapore.