IPL 2025 will start on March 22. Here's Wisden's power rankings for the 2025 Indian Premier League 10 days out from the competition.
10. Rajasthan Royals
Predicted first XII: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Sanju Samson, Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Yudhvir Singh, Maheesh Theekshana, Tushar Deshpande, Sandeep Sharma
The Royals retained their core group of players except for Jos Buttler, but managed to make a mess of the auction and end up with a squad that does not have a single seam-bowling all-rounder, or high-quality frontline Indian spinner. Their bowling attack will be led by Jofra Archer, who is rarely reliable over the course of a complete IPL season, and their top five has no overseas batter. On a positive note, they will have Rahul Dravid back as a coach, under whom India won the T20 World Cup last year.
Full Rajasthan Royals IPL 2025 squad.
9. Gujarat Titans
Predicted first XII: Shubman Gill, Jos Buttler, Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Glenn Phillips, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
The IPL 2022 winners boast a strong bowling attack and a high-scoring top three, but that's pretty much it. In fact, the top three of Shubman Gill, Jos Buttler, and Sai Sudharsan may also end up being a weakness given their lack of natural explosiveness. Their middle order batting options look very thin, and Glenn Phillips, who's in great form, might end up sitting out if they decide to play Sherfane Rutherford to add some stability to the middle order.
Full Gujarat Titans IPL 2025 squad.
8. Delhi Capitals
Predicted first XII: Jake Fraser-McGurk, KL Rahul, Faf du Plessis, Abishek Porel, Axar Patel, Tristan Stubbs, Ashutosh Sharma, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar, Mohit Sharma, T Natarajan
Delhi Capitals have been hit by the absence of Harry Brook once again. They have not named a replacement for him yet. Given how they constructed their lineup to revolve around Brook at No.4, they need to pick a solid replacement otherwise they risk forcing players out of their preferred roles. Faf du Plessis might have to cover as the No.3, which would push Abishek Porel down to No.4 - both not ideal scenarios. With the ball, their pace attack is thin with not many Indian backups for Mukesh Kumar, Mohit Sharma, and T Natarajan, none of whom have been close to international cricket recently.
Full Delhi Capitals IPL 2025 squad.
7. Sunrisers Hyderabad
Predicted first XII: Travis Head, Abhishek Sharma, Ishan Kishan, Heinrich Klaasen, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Abhinav Manohar, Wiaan Mulder, Pat Cummins, Harshal Patel, Jaydev Unadkat, Rahul Chahar, Mohammed Shami
Last year's runners-up boast of some of the most explosive T20 players in their ranks, including the famed opening duo of Travis Head and Abhishek Sharma. But their batting tapers off quite early, leaving their lower middle order thin. Their fourth overseas slot will be shared between Wiaan Mulder and Kamindu Mendis, both of whom are untested properties in India. Rahul Chahar as the lone Indian spinner could also turn out to be an area of concern for them. If he fails, SRH will be forced to bring in Adam Zampa, which will compromise their batting depth.
Full Sunrisers Hyderabad IPL 2025 squad.
6. Kolkata Knight Riders
Predicted first XII: Quinton de Kock, Sunil Narine, Ajinkya Rahane, Venkatesh Iyer, Angkrish Raghuvanshi, Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Harshit Rana, Anrich Nortje, Vaibhav Arora, Varun Chakravarthy
IPL 2024 winners surprisingly let go of their title-winning captain, then bid an insanely high amount for his namesake, and then surprisingly didn't appoint him captain, giving the armband to Ajinkya Rahane instead. The structure of their victorious team is still intact though, allowing them to bat deep and have two four-over bowlers in Sunil Narine and Andre Russell inside the top seven. Their weakest link is arguably their captain, and it won't be a surprise if they are forced to take some drastic calls mid-season.
Full Kolkata Knight Riders IPL 2025 squad.
5. Lucknow Super Giants
Predicted first XII: Rishabh Pant, Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, David Miller, Ayush Badoni, Shahbaz Ahmed, Mohsin Khan, Ravi Bishnoi, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, M Siddharth
Lucknow have one of the most enviable batting lineups in the tournament. They will be captained by Rishabh Pant this season who may be tempted to bat at the top of the order, especially given the fact that LSG don't have many designated opening options. The major issue with LSG will be around the fitness of some key players. Mitchell Marsh might not start the tournament, and so may Mayank Yadav. Mohsin Khan and Shamar Joseph are other injury-prone seamers they have in their squad. If they are lucky in this aspect though, LSG have a team that can go the distance.
Full Lucknow Super Giants IPL 2025 squad.
4. Royal Challengers Bengaluru
Predicted first XII: Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Rajat Patidar, Krunal Pandya, Jitesh Sharma, Liam Livingstone, Tim David, Swapnil Singh, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma
RCB have a strong bowling (yes, bowling) lineup on paper this season. They also have multiple overseas backups for Josh Hazlewood, who is expected to be their first-choice overseas seamer. Their batting lineup has a lot of explosiveness in Phil Salt, Liam Livingstone, Tim David, and Jitesh Sharma, and also the reliability of Virat Kohli and Rajat Patidar, who will don the captain's hat for the first time at RCB. RCB don't have any experienced frontline spinners though, and their T20 specialist middle order batters might not be the best suited to come in early in case of a collapse.
Full Royal Challengers Bengaluru IPL 2025 squad.
3. Mumbai Indians
Predicted first XII: Rohit Sharma, Ryan Rickelton, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Will Jacks, Hardik Pandya, Naman Dhir, Mitchell Santner, Karn Sharma, Deepak Chahar, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah
Mumbai have most bases covered in their first XI. As they usually do, they have a very strong pace attack which will see Trent Boult reunited with Jasprit Bumrah. To add to that threat will be Deepak Chahar, who will also provide batting depth. A couple of contentious spots are that of the fourth overseas player and No.7, but the might of the rest of the lineup should be more than enough to cover them up.
Full Mumbai Indians IPL 2025 squad.
2. Chennai Super Kings
Predicted first XII: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Rachin Ravindra, Rahul Tripathi, Deepak Hooda, Shivam Dube, Sam Curran, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni, R Ashwin, Noor Ahmad, Matheesha Pathirana, Anshul Kamboj
CSK have built a squad with their spin-friendly home conditions in mind. Between Ravindra Jadeja, R Ashwin, and Noor Ahmad, they have the capability to choke oppositions for fun. Rachin Ravindra is in red-hot form coming into the season and has Devon Conway as his backup. They also have a well-rounded seam attack which has gone under the radar, with a variety of left-armers, right-armers, new-ball specialists and death specialists. Their middle order lacks a high-profile name though, and they don't have another wicketkeeper in their first-choice XII other than MS Dhoni.
Full Chennai Super Kings IPL 2025 squad.
1. Punjab Kings
Predicted first XII: Prabhsimran Singh, Josh Inglis, Shreyas Iyer, Glenn Maxwell, Nehal Wadhera, Azmatullah Omarzai, Shashank Singh, Marco Jansen, Harpreet Brar, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal
Not many people would have had Punjab as their top side before the start of IPL 2025, but between the auction and now, their squad has grown in stature. Azmatullah Omarzai lit up the Champions Trophy recently, Josh Inglis has become an all-format centurion, and everything Shreyas Iyer has touched in the last few months has turned to gold. They also have the maverick Glenn Maxwell, top-class all-rounders in Marcus Stoinis and Marco Jansen, India's top two T20I wickets takers in Arshdeep Singh and Yuzvendra Chahal, and some highly promising uncapped Indians. They have not qualified for the playoffs in the last 11 seasons - it would be extremely surprising if that doesn't change this year.
Full Punjab Kings IPL 2025 squad.
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