IPL 2014 team preview: Kings XI Punjab

Team composition

Team Rank Player EFscore Overall Rank Role
1 NLTC Perera 0.157 10 Allrounder
2 MG Johnson 0.138 15 Bowler
3 DA Miller 0.109 24 Batsman
4 SE Marsh 0.071 53 Batsman
5 P Awana 0.062 60 Bowler
6 L Balaji 0.057 65 Bowler
7 V Sehwag 0.053 74 Batsman
8 Sandeep Sharma (1) 0.044 85 Bowler
9 Mandeep Singh 0.037 98 Batsman
10 R Dhawan 0.029 119 Bowler
11 M Vohra 0.027 124 Batsman
12 Gurkeerat Singh 0.016 161 Batsman
13 GJ Maxwell 0.016 164 Bowler
14 CA Pujara 0.015 166 Batsman
15 WP Saha 0.010 188 WK
16 SN Thakur NA NA
17 Shivam Sharma NA NA
18 GJ Bailey NA NA Batsman
19 AR Patel NA NA
20 Anureet Singh NA NA Bowler
21 Karanveer Singh NA NA
22 BE Hendricks NA NA Bowler

Total EFscore of top 11 players: 0.789
Total EFscore of all ranked players: 0.848

For the Kings XI Punjab, it is all about the overseas players power. The top four in their team are all from overseas, and barring any unusual circumstances all four of them should find a place in the final eleven. The team brought in Sehwag, who together with Shaun Marsh should provide a strong opening batting combination for the team. The bowling is spearheaded by Mitchell Johnson, but the rest of the bowling corps leave much to be desired and may give away too many runs.

Roster management: Surprisingly, the team has only one full-time wicketkeeper, Wriddhiman Saha. Including him in the playing eleven means that a better player will have to sit out. Should he get injured, it will be an uphill task for the team to replace him as there is no obvious back-up for him in the squad.

Dark horse: Virender Sehwag’s international career is in wilderness, and he didn’t exactly set the previous IPL season on fire by his batting either. However, few in the world can demolish the opposing bowling attack like Sehwag, and his form will be crucial for Kings XI Punjab to reach the knock-out stage of the tournament.

Team rating methodology