Kohli’s title hunt with RCB, Dhoni’s return to CSK: Storylines which will keep us hooked to IPL 11

The eleventh edition of the Indian Premier League gets underway on Saturday. Known for its entertainment quotient, the tournament is set to make for interesting viewing as the eight teams re-convene following a reshuffling of their players during the auction.

The season will mark the return of Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals to the fold following the completion of their two-year suspension. This edition will see a mid-season player transfer window come into effect as well as the see the Decision Review System being used. Beyond all, though, the focus will remain on what the stars to deliver the goods in crunch situations.

Here’s a look at a few storylines which are set to hold our attention as the tournament rolls out.

Dhoni back at CSK

Many fans were left distraught when the Chennai Superkings franchise along with Rajasthan Royals. were suspended in light of the 2013 spot-fixing scandal. IPL 11 marks the return of both teams. An emotional MS Dhoni, who enjoys a special connection with the Chennai faithful even gave an impassioned speech ahead of the tournament.

“We are back! We are back as a whole team,” said an emotional DHoni as he addressed his CSK teammates and team sponsors at a prommotional event. Since IPL’s inception, the CSK-Dhoni bond has been one of the highlights of the tournament. The Jharkhand-lad has been accepted with open arms by the people of Chennai.

It will be special moment for all CSK fans when Dhoni will don the yellow jersey again and walk onto the field leading his team. He will do so in the tournament lung-opener at the Wankhede Stadium against Mumbai Indians on Saturday. The highlight, though, will be when he walks onto the field at the MA Chidambaram Stadium when his side takes on Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday.

That though will only be one part of the story. The other will be to see if they can rediscover the form which made them the most consistent team in the IPL.

Wrist spinners vs Finger spinners

Over the past few months, India’s wrist-spin duo - Kuldeep Yadav and Yuzvendra Chahal - have made quite splash with their consistent performances in the limited overs set-up of national team.

Their success on wickets in South Africa shone light on the effectiveness of wrist-spin as weapon in the limited-overs game. The IPL provide an interesting test for this theory. The tournament also provides a chance for finger spinners to prove their worth in light of the sudden rise in stock of the wrist-spinners.

Off-spinner Washington Sundar made quite an impact in the recently-concluded Nidahas Trophy in Sri Lanka. He emerged as the highest wicket-taker of the tournament alongside Chahal. Sundar’s ability to stop run-flow and wicket-taking ability in the powerplay was one of the highlights of the tournament.

“If you see over the years off-spinners have always been effective in all formats. It’s an important skill, as good as wrist spin,” Sundar said during the series. He will be hoping to replicate the effort in the high-profile IPL as well. The likes of R Ashwin and Ravindra Jadeja will also be hoping to notch up impressive performances as they look to remain in contention for national team selection for the ODIs and T20Is.

RCB’s hunt for elusive title

Virat Kohl has had quite a year.

As captain of India in all three formats, Kohli has achieved unprecedented success. His fortunes with the Royal Challengers Bangalore, though, are in stark contrast to the winning form he has enjoyed with the national team. Despite reaching three finals, the IPL trophy has eluded the 29-year-old. RCB go into IPL 11 on back of their worst-ever season that saw them finish in last place.

“More than the fans I want to win the cup,” Kohli said ahead of the season. “I have been with Bangalore for last 10 years and we haven’t crossed the final hurdle three times. I can assure you, my commitment is going to be 120 per per cent to try and achieve the goal this time,” he added.

Kohli has a relatively balanced team at his disposal this time around. With senior pros likes AB de Villiers and Brendon McCullum by his side, the batting looks stable. In Chris Woakes, Quinton de Kock and Parthiv Patel they have enough firepower to mount a serious challenge for the title. Yuzvendra Chahal, Washington Sundar and Pawan Negi add strength to the spin department while Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav and Mohammad Siraj make sure the pace department isn’t worse for wear either.

U-19 stars in spotlight

Teams splurged big on members of India’s World Cup-winning U-19 team during the players’ auction. Star players like Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi and Manjot Kalra made quite splash during the tournament. Their skills will be tested in the highly-competitive tournament.

Shaw, with his exploits in India’s domestic circuit, has already shown that he is more than just ready for cricket at the senior level. The others, though, have still to come good at the top-level and will come under some severe scrutiny. It will be interesting to see how many chances they get to play in the first team.

Mid-season transfers

IPL 11 marks the introduction of the mid-season transfer window. A five-day transfer window will be provided for teams to transfers uncapped players who have played no more than two games in the season by the half-way mark of the tournament. It is a concept that has been endorsed by Mumbai Indians skipper Rohit Sharma.

“The mid-season transfer window will give the teams an opportunity to see what they need in the squad and other teams will also be looking at what players they can get,” Rohit said. “It completely depends on the franchise if a situation comes when we need to get a player or give a player. It is good for the tournament and will add even more value to it,” he added.

This edition will also see the Decision Review System being used for the first time.

High-profile absentees

The absence of Steve Smith and David Warner is set to leave a big hole in the IPL this year. Following the ball-tampering scandal, both players were banned from participation in the tournament.

Smith was an integral part of the Rajasthan Royals side, as was Warner for Sunrisers Hyderabad. In fact, as skippers of their sides, their teams were built around them. It will be a test for both teams as they look a bit light without their star players.

Other than the suspensions, injury worries have been one of the major talking points in the lead up to the IPL this year. Star pacers Mitchell Starc and Kagiso Rabada will miss the tournament through injury. They were set to lead the attack for Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils respectively. It will be interesting to see how the two sides cope in their absence.

KKR already has a thin squad. The team was waiting anxiously as big-hitter Chris Lynn and all-rounder Andre Russell raced to recover in time for the tournament. Both have joined the squad, but team would do well to keep their workload in check through the gruelling two-month long tournament. Mumbai Indians too will be keeping an close eye on injury-prone Australia pacer Pat Cummins, who joins the side after a long tour of South Africa.

New captains

Ahead of the auction, each team had a chance to retain its core players. While some chose to avoid a major overhaul, others have gone for striking new revamp.

Kings XI Punjab will be led by first-time captain R Ashwin, while Kolkata Knight Riders will see India keeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik take charge.

Karthik has never been a regular leader, even for his state team. Karthik led Tamil Nadu to the Vijay Hazare Trophy title in 2009-10 and India Red to the Duleep Trophy title last year. Ashwin too isn’t a regular skipper. He was last in charge of a team way back in 2009 when he led Tamil Nadu to victory in the Vijay Hazare Trophy. Both players, however, have no captaincy experience when it comes to the shortest format of the game.

Eye on Agarwal

With 1160 runs at an average of 105.45, Mayank Agarwal really brought the house down in the Ranji Trophy season earlier this year. His marauding form saw him notch up five centuries in the season to eclipse all of his peers. He went onto top the run-scorers chart in the Vijay Hazare Trophy as well, scoring nearly double the runs as compared to the batsman who finished second. He is now in contention for a place in the national team.

Before that, though, is the small business of the Indian Premier League. A positive performance in the high-profile league goes a long way in furthering the cause of a cricketer looking to seal a position in the highly-competitive national team set-up.

However, his track record in the IPL has been abysmal over the years. In the seven seasons that he has played so far, Agarwal averages just 17.69, having scored just 814 runs in 53 games. His performance in the T20 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy also did not quite match the stellar show that he produced in the longer formats.

With a place in the Indian team just a few steps away, the IPL season could prove crucial for his future prospects. He will be playing for Kings XI Punjab in the IPL this time around. The team has gone for a revamped look, having retained just one player from its previous lot. Agarwal is set to enjoy a central role in the batting order. It remains to be seen if he can replicate his fine form in domestic cricket on the glitzy platform of the IPL.