The most prominent domestic T20 cricket league in the world gets going Friday, March 22 when the 2024 Indian Premier League season kicks off. Defending champions Chennai Super Kings will take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the first match, beginning a wild 10-team chase for the championship. Even though some teams are stronger than others on paper, the nature of T20 cricket means any team could conceivably come out as the winner of this league.
Here’s a look at the title odds for the 2024 tournament courtesy of DraftKings Sportsbook.
The favorite
Mumbai Indians (+400)
After finishing last in the league in 2022, Mumbai managed to get to the eliminator thanks to a potent batting lineup. The franchise made a big move in the offseason, trading for Gujarat captain (and former Indians star) Hardik Pandya, making him the centerpiece of this team. Cameron Green is gone but most of the key players from last year’s team return. Star bowler Jasprit Bumrah should be back to 100%, which makes this team the clear favorite. Mumbai have historically started slow in IPL competitions but this is a great opportunity for the club to get back to the top of the mountain.
The other contenders
Chennai Super Kings (+500)
The 10-time finalists have only repeated as champions once, back in 2010-11 when the squad was considered one of the greatest T20 teams ever assembled. At some point, age will catch up to Chennai as the veterans continue to feature heavily on the team. However, the CSK homefield advantage is unlike any other and there’s enough young talent on this squad to provide a solid mix for the coaching staff to work with. It will likely be a down year for CSK but don’t ever make the mistake of overlooking this team.
Gujarat Titans (+700)
Losing Pandya is a huge blow, just like it was a massive boost when he came to lead Titans. This squad is now headlined by captain Shubman Gill and Rashid Khan. The likes of David Miller and Rahul Tewatia will need to continue their brilliance as finishers, and someone has to step up with Mohammed Shami out due to an injury. Sai Sudharsan needs to have a big season, but the keys will be Wriddhiman Saha and Vijay Shankar. Those two veteran Indian players have underperformed in the past but a bump in form will help this team make the playoffs.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (+800), Rajasthan Royals (+800), Lucknow Super Giants (+800)
Faf du Plessis, Virat Kohli and Glenn Maxwell provide a lot of batting power for RCB, but is there anyone else who can step up? Cameron Green helps tremendously but there’s not much else in the bowling department behind Mohammed Siraj.
The Royals in a slightly better position in this department with Trent Boult, Yuzvendra Chahal and Avesh Khan in the mix. Yashasvi Jaiswal is in the best form of his young career, with Sanju Samson and Jos Buttler set to bounce back from underwhelming showings in 2023.
LSG have an impressive batting lineup with Quinton de Kock, KL Rahul, Devdutt Padikkal, Nicolas Pooran and Marcus Stoinis but is there any consistent bowler in this team? Someone will have to emerge for this group to be a real threat. As Mumbai will tell you from a year ago, it’s hard for your batting to bail you out in every match no matter how good your roster is.
Best bet to win the title: Mumbai Indians (+400)
There’s some bias here as a Mumbai fan, but the return of Bumrah and the emergence of Akash Madhwal at the end of last season should revamp this bowling unit. Mohammad Nabi is a nice addition as well. The captaincy situation with Pandya and Rohit Sharma might take a few unwanted twists and turns but ultimately the improvement in the bowling department will help this high-octane lineup win some games. After seeing CSK win a fifth title a season ago, Mumbai will once again pull ahead in the overall title standings with an impressive sixth championship.
