The 2023 season of the Indian Premier League has now entered its home leg with teams closing their playoff berths and preparing for the knockout matches next week. JioCinema's IPL expert and former South Africa captain Graeme Smith took some time out from his commentary assignment to speak to The Quint about what has worked for the top performing teams this season.
Defending champions Gujarat Titans qualified for the playoffs in top position this time as well. Last year, they won the title in their debut season which was a surprise to some of the teams that have been around for more than a decade. What do you think has really worked for them?
I think it's a combination of things that they've done really well. They've got a good cricket system and let the cricket people make all the cricket decisions. There’s good leadership in Ashish Nehra, Gary Kirsten, Hardik Pandya - both off the field and on the field. And then I think it's a combination of a good batting unit with an excellent bowling team as well. So they're a very balanced team.
They've got a lot of attacking weapons with both bat and ball and a lot of players that have delivered the game throughout the tournament. You know it's not one ever the same person that delivers on the day, they've got a lot of match winners in their XI.
Let’s talk about the season Chennai are having. This is the same literally the same lineup that had the team finish ninth last season. Ben Stokes though was bought in the IPL auction in December and we thought he would be the bearer of change. Didn’t do much. So what do you think has clicked for Chennai this time?
I think they have their excellent home form, the Chepauk is an incredible base for them. And again, they’re very similar to Gujarat Titans- they have a very well run cricketing elements of the franchise as well, you know, stable management group that has been there for a long time.
Then there’s obviously MS Dhoni. He provides such stable, calm leadership. They do the simple things really, and also get the best out of all of the youngsters.
Rajasthan Royals are one of the IPL teams you have played for in your days. What are your thoughts on their new star Yashasvi Jaiswal. He’s been through so much to get where he has today. It’s like a true Cinderella story in cricket isn’t it?
Yeah, it's fantastic. I love the way that he's taking everything in his stride. He just looks like a really great kid who is very determined to be successful. And every time he gets out into the middle, he wants to make the most of it. And he's playing well. He's got great form. I love the sort of quiet inner determination, quiet confidence that he has. His stroke game has certainly developed, even from last year's IPL to this year.
And you know what I love is that in the powerplay he doesn't try and take ridiculous risks. He just plays natural cricket and is able to score that at a very dynamic pace. So I think that's that's a very big assets to have.
You’re of course part of the IPL this year as part of JioCinema’s commentary panel, an expert in the panel. How has that experience been for you?
Yeah, it's been great on a number of levels. To just be a part of sort of the changing of the digital landscape, to be at the forefront of it with JioCinema, I think the offering is mind-blowing. When you arrive here to work when you're Raja to work, you know, the 12 different languages, you know, being able to connect directly to, to all the IPL fans round round India.
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