Two spots in the play-offs remain open as the closest finish to an Indian Premier League season ever reaches its climax
Two huge games to decide IPL play-offs
It's crunch time for Indian Premier League finals hopefuls on Sunday with just two games left and five teams still in the running for the playoffs.
The IPL's playoffs format will see the top two teams face off in a qualifier for a spot in the final on Tuesday night (May 24). The teams that finished third and fourth meet in an elimination final the next night.
Gujarat Lions sealed their spot in the qualifier with their win over Mumbai on Saturday night, while David Warner's Sunrisers are in the box seat to join them, needing to defeat Kolkata on Sunday.
The season is over for whichever team loses Wednesday night's eliminator, while the winner will meet the loser of Tuesday's qualifier in Delhi on May 27 to vie for the second spot in the final in Bangalore next Sunday night.
A number of Australia’s one-day squad members are likely to feature in the IPL finals – including Hyderabad captain David Warner, Royal Challengers Bangalore’s Travis Head and Gujarat Lions’ Aaron Finch and James Faulkner – with all to remain (barring injury) with their respective clubs until their campaigns are completed, before linking up with the ODI squad in Guyana ahead of their clash with the West Indies on June 5.
Here's how the table shapes up for regular season conclusion:
1. Gujarat Lions (18 points)
A batting blitz from Brendon McCullum and Suresh Raina saw Gurajat seal a double chance on Saturday night. It's an impressive result for Brad Hodge's men in their debut season.
2. Sunrisers Hyderabad (16 points, final game v Kolkata on Sunday)
David Warner is probably still fuming with himself after a simple dropped chance probably cost his team victory on Friday night against Delhi. Now, the Sunrisers need to beat Kolkata to guarantee their spot in the first qualifier. Another defeat for the Orange Army will bring the statisticians to the fore as Net Run Rate becomes a factor.
3. Royal Challengers Bangalore (14 points, final game v Delhi on Sunday)
In what is now set to be a cracking elimination-style contest with a post-season spot up for grabs, RCB and the Delhi Daredevils go head-to-head in the 56th and final match of the regular season. You might have noticed that Virat Kohli is hitting them OK lately for Bangalore – just the four centuries this season, single-season run-scoring records, world no.1 ranking, the list goes on – and with Gayle back in form and motivated to hit the headlines with a book coming out, oh, and they also have AB de Villiers …. Remind us again how this team isn't a dozen points clear at the top?
4. Kolkata Knight Riders (14 points, final game v Sunrisers on Sunday)
Kolkata's fate is simple - they must defeat the Sunrisers to advance. Toppling the in-form Hyderabad will be another matter entirely.
5. Mumbai Indians (14 points)
Mumbai entered their final clash of the season against Gujarat needing to pick up the two points for a win and possibly a little boost to their NRR. Having failed in that endeavour, Ricky Ponting's side is relying on an unlikely series of results to push them through on NRR, but it's essentially season over for the reigning champions.
6. Delhi Daredevils (14 points, final game v RCB on Sunday)
Delhi's task became more difficult with the rain-affected defeat against the Rising Pune Supergiants, but then last night they beat the table-topping Sunrisers in a final-ball thriller to throw them right back in the mix. However, they do face the small problem of taking on a Bangalore side that's hit red-hot form with Kohli, Gayle and de Villiers in its top three.
7. Rising Pune Supergiants (8 points)
The Supergiants will finish their debut season in seventh spot after consigning Punjab to the wooden spoon on Saturday. Adam Zampa has been a star for the fledgling franchise, but his emergence is just about the only thing to have gone right in an injury-ravaged debut season. Kevin Pietersen, Faf du Plessis, Steve Smith and Mitchell Marsh make a pretty handy international line-up – except they're all back home recuperating from various injuries.
8. Kings XI Punjab (8 points)
A disappointing campaign is over and Punjab will finish on the bottom of the table. Glenn Maxwell has returned home, and now so too Marcus Stoinis. When David Miller was dumped as captain mid-season, it was hoped it would spark a turnaround. Instead, the team was forced to defend allegations of a dressing-room punch up. The end couldn't come quick enough.