Virtually out of the play-off race, bottom-placed Sunrisers Hyderabad will hope to keep their new-found momentum intact when they face table toppers Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, in Sharjah, on Thursday.
While T20 is primarily a batsmen-dominated format, the bowlers have evolved over the years and left a mark with their clever innovations.
Rayudu plays only one format for India and his decision to quit Ranji Trophy and play ODIs and Indian Premier League raised a few eyebrows but the Hyderabad right-hander called it his method of managing the workload.
A desperate Sunrisers Hyderabad would seek inspiration from skipper David Warner to arrest any further slide when they take on Punjab Kings in an IPL match, in Chennai, on Wednesday.
The BCCI has set a salary cap of Rs 90 crore for 10 IPL franchises, including the two new entrants, for the next season and allowed a maximum of four retentions for the eight established teams.
A look at the top performers in the IPL this year, who set the T20 tournament alight with outstanding performances this season.
With 23 wickets from 13 games, the fast bowler has been the go-to-man with the ball for the defending champions this season.
Mahendra Singh Dhoni will be eager to break the sequence of reverses and get Rising Pune Supergiants' campaign back on track when they lock horns with in-form Kolkata Knight Riders.
A resurgent Delhi Daredevils will look to build a winning momentum.
While the auction ahead of the ninth edition, starting in April, was great for Indian players in general, there were a few surprises in store. Rediff.com takes a look at the Indian players who secured themselves the best deals.
If MI have their problems to sort out, having lost at the death in all three games so far, RCB too have their own shortcomings to address with only one win in three games under their belt.
Royal Challengers Bangalore will look to shrug off the disappointment of two back-to-back defeats and get back to winning ways when they taken on Sunrisers Hyderabad as they aim to seal their place in the play-offs, in the IPL match, in Sharjah, on Saturday.
'I was shown something about him practicing at the nets for Mumbai Indians so I don't know what kind of injury it is. 'If the injury was serious he wouldn't even be padded up.'
Chennai Super Kings pacer Deepak Chahar has agreed with his captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni that the team needs a better pitch at home despite winning all their games, in Chennai, so far.
Mumbai police on Saturday launched a probe into alleged molestation of Bollywood actress Preity Zinta by her former boyfriend Ness Wadia and would soon record the statements of IPL CEO and others even as the industrialist rejected the charge as "false and baseless".
Delhi Capitals assistant coach Shane Watson said the incredibly talented Prithvi Shaw has been inconsistent and has been disappointing this season.
Teams play safe, retain star players, total purse at Rs 148 crore versus Rs 198 crore last year
A win over Sunrisers Hyderabad is imperative for Mumbai Indians to keep their chances alive of making it to the play-offs.
Skipper Dinesh Karthik will face a big test when a struggling Kolkata Knight Riders lock horns with a resurgent Delhi Daredevils, led by double title winning former KKR skipper Gautam Gambhir, in a much-anticipated IPL clash, in Kolkata, on Monday.
Images from Sunday's IPL match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals, in Dubai.
Smashing Warner. Amazing Stokes. Super Smith. Pure Amla...
Let's looks at 10 former India players, who missed the IPL but had they been active today, they could have forced the Ambanis and the Shah Rukh Khans to loosen their purse strings a tad more.
The Knight Riders have outplayed Rajasthan both in the home and away games this season.
Delhi finished their torrid campaign with a 13-run win that not only saw them end with 10 points from 14 games, but also ended Mumbai's journey.
'All the venues are high-scoring venues. So what you need is pace.' 'You really want someone to come there and control the flow of runs in the death overs, whether you are setting a target or setting a target.' 'It is going to be the fast bowlers because at how many venues have you seen spinners bowling the death overs?'
Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma says the team cannot be dependent on him alone to perform in every match and it is time other players put up their hands and started delivering.
Shubman Gill's unbeaten half-century and Dinesh Karthik's quickfire knock helped Kolkata Knight Rider crush Chennai Super Kings by six wickets, in Kolkata, on Thursday.
In their quest to be battle-ready for the upcoming Champions League Twenty20, Kolkata Knight Riders sent four of their players -- Yusuf Pathan, Piyush Chawla, Manvinder Bisla and Kuldeep Yadav -- to Bloemfontein, South Africa for 15 days of training camp that included cycling, running and mountaineering.
On the other hand, the Royals have managed to win only one of their three fixtures. They lost to Chennai Super Kings in their previous match to slip down to the sixth spot. Sanju Samson and his men will be eyeing a second win.
With it's scandalous past, still fresh in the minds of fans and critics alike, the Indian Premier League (IPL) organisers will look to ensure that the focus remains firmly on cricket when the cash-rich event gets underway with a glamorous opening ceremony on Tuesday.
India Test skipper Virat Kohli was among the few cricketers who received a higher actual salary according to the salary details of the retained Indian Premier League players listed by the Board of Control for Cricket in India on Friday.
Gujarat Titans have been firing on all cylinders, with their batting prowess and bowling might.
With Cricket Australia repeatedly stressing on the "unrealistic" challenge of hosting the 16-team T20 World Cup in October-November, the likelihood of having the IPL has increased significantly in a year thrown haywire by the COVID-19 pandemic. The ICC recently pushed its final decision on the T20 World Cup to next month but the BCCI has already zeroed in on the September-October window for the tournament.
Will Ravi Shastri be retained or will the BCCI opt for a new face?
'Opposition to the idea of a state flag has come from the small thinking pseudo-nationalists, who are the ones pushing Hindi-Hindu-Hindustan.' 'Identifying India wrongly as a one language, one religion nation,' says Aakar Patel.
Against England on Monday and then Wednesday's game versus Australia, the Indian team management would look to give the players who are still not automatic choices in the playing XI, more overs to bat or bowl to get a better idea about their current form.
Mumbai Indians have a 10-5 record against KKR. Can they maintain the advantage?
The likes of Virat Kohli, David Warner will be aiming to silence their critics, while KKR's Shreyas Iyer and Lucknow Super Giants' K L Rahul will be looking to prove themselves after being the handed captaincy of their respective franchises.