Has The Heat-Wave Turned The IPL Upside Down?

IPL 2022 has thrown up several interesting trends. One of them is how teams have changed strategies as the heat rose in the Maximum City and around.

The 58th match of the Indian Premier League between Delhi and Rajasthan bucked the trend of the second half of IPL 2022. Delhi won the toss and won the match, while in most other matches Rajasthan had lost the toss and claimed a win. Besides, this was after 5 matches a team winning the toss elected to field first.

The win toss bat first formula was put to rest by the IPL team captains in the first half of the season. The dew factor made it bowling difficult. Hence bowling first and winning the match became almost predictable.

In the first half of this year's IPL, the team batting second had a clear advantage: the team batting second won almost 60 per cent of the matches.

Suddenly, after the onset of the heatwave the opposite happened: the team batting FIRST won over 60 per cent of the matches.

The effect of the APSA80 spray have neutralised the effect of dew.

But the heat wave has also been impacting the tournament.

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With the league nearing the business end, the teams are trying every strategy in their book to clinch a win.

It could be a matter of nerves: tension is rising as the season comes to a climax, batting second is more nerve-wracking. Some of the best finishers in the business are not working their magic or have left for their shores. The teams are working in their comfort zone to notch up wins.