IPL Qualification Scenarios: How things stand for RR, KKR, MI, GT in playoff race

Rajasthan Royals (RR) remained in contention for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 playoffs with a convincing nine-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Eden Gardens on Thursday.

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That win took them to third place with 12 points, behind leaders and defending champions Gujarat Titans (16 points) and Chennai Super Kings (15).

Meanwhile, Kolkata Knight Riders find themselves in a tough spot following the defeat. They are currently placed seventh in the standings with 10 points from 12 matches, behind the likes of Mumbai Indians (MI), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB)

KKR, though, are ahead of Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Net Run Rate. While KKR have an NRR of -0.357, PBKS’s NRR reads -0.441.

On Friday, MI take on GT at the Wankhede Stadium in their bid to remain in contention for a playoff spot. MI had surged into the top four with a six-wicket win over RCB on 9 May.

Let’s now take a look at the playoff scenarios for the four teams:

Rajasthan Royals (12 matches, 12 points)

Remaining matches: vs RCB (14 May), vs PBKS (19 May)

Rajasthan Royals chased down 150 in just 13.1 overs against Kolkata Knight Riders and that boosted their NRR in a massive way.

Following the win, RR are placed third with 12 points and an NRR of +0.633, but the catch is that LSG (11 points, NRR of +0.294) still have a game in hand. Even MI, on the same points as RR have a game in hand, so RR are not there just yet. Sanju Samson and Co still have work to do.

The simple thing is to beat both RCB and PBKS in their remaining matches, and then end up with a positive NRR. They would have 16 points should they win both the games, and a positive NRR would see RR qualify for the playoffs over other teams in the fray.

Kolkata Knight Riders (12 matches, 10 points)

Remaining matches: vs CSK (14 May), vs LSG (20 May)

KKR’s nine-wicket defeat to RR on Thursday has proved costly. The Nitish Rana-led side currently stand seventh in the points table with just 10 points, and with just two matches remaining, they can only make it to 14 points even if they win both. A total of 14 points just won’t be enough for any team to qualify for the playoffs, and at the moment it is all but certain that KKR would suffer yet another league stage exit.

Mumbai Indians (11 matches, 12 points)

Remaining matches: vs GT (12 May), vs LSG (16 May), vs SRH (21 May)

Mumbai Indians boosted their IPL playoff qualification hopes with a six-wicket win over RCB in their previous game. That helped them to jump to third place from eighth at the time. Following RR’s win over KKR, MI slipped to fourth with 12 points, but MI do have a game in hand than compared to RR.

MI, though, have a negative NRR of -0.255, and will have to win big against all their next three opponents in GT, LSG and SRH. Even if they win two out of their three games next, they will get to 16 points but will need to ensure they finish with a very positive NRR.

Gujarat Titans (11 matches, 16 points)

Remaining matches: vs MI (12 May), vs SRH (15 May), vs RCB (21 May)

Gujarat Titans sit atop the IPL points table with 16 points from 11 matches.

They face MI, SRH and RCB in their next three league stage matches and a win in either of those games will all but secure GT a top-two finish, meaning they would play Qualifier 1.

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