The 13th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) is scheduled to be commencing in less than 15 days now and the teams have already started formulating plans and strategies for the 2020 edition. Each of the 8 IPL franchises will rely on their core players to shoulder the responsibility and lead the team to win games from crucial encounters.
On Sunday, BCCI revealed the schedule for IPL 2020 and according to that, the defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI) will be locking horns with last season’s runner-ups Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the tournament opener of the 13th edition.
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However, they will also look to some crucial players in every time who can make a massive difference for them this season. While cricket is certainly a team game, some cricketers have the ability to turn the match on its head with its capability itself.
Let’s have a look at one such game-changing ‘X-Factor’ player from MI and CSK franchises for IPL 2020.
Mumbai Indians
Hardik Pandya
The flamboyant Indian all-rounder, Hardik Pandya, who was the best player for MI in 2019 is once again expected to provide the X-Factor for the franchise this season as well. The all-rounder has been missing the competitive cricket out of action for quite some time and will be returning to high-intensity cricket with IPL 2020. Hardik played some match-winning knocks in the last edition and will be expected to carrying his form and confidence into the upcoming season too.
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In last season, Hardik amassed as many as 402 runs in 16 matches at a brilliant average of 44.66 at a brilliant strike-rate of 191.42. He also picked as many as 14 wickets at an average of 27.85.
Chris Lynn
During the IPL 2020 auctions, Mumbai Indians went on to buy Chris Lynn at a base price of ₹2 crores. Earlier, Lynn had only played for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) squad since his debut in the cash-rich league. In his IPL career so far, Lynn had scored 1280 runs in 41 games at an average of 33.68. He is known for his hard-hitting abilities and with Quinton de Kock already in the squad, Chris can be expected to bolster their opening pair.
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In last season, Hardik amassed as many as 405 runs in 13 matches at a brilliant average of 31.65 at an average strike-rate of 139.65.
