IPL 2023: Complete squads of 10 franchises, key players, team-wise schedule and more

The sixteenth edition of the Indian Premier League begins on Friday when title holders Gujarat Titans face Chennai Super Kings in the opener at Ahmedabad.

The matches are set to return in the traditional home and away format once again this year. Further, after the league was expanded to become a ten-team affair and won by one of the new franchises last year, the competition is expected to go up a few notches with the traditional giants looking to bounce back. There is also the addition of the Impact Player rule that is set to create intrigue as the tournament progrsses.

Impact player at IPL 2023: All you need to know about the new rule in Indian Premier League

Before the league phase begins, here’s a compilation of the 10 squads in the tournament, team-wise schedule of the league phase, captains and more:

Mumbai Indians

Captain: Rohit Sharma

Top foreign players: Cameron Green (Australia all-rounder), Tim David (Singapore-born Australian batter), Jofra Archer (England fast bowler)

Key Indian players: Ishan Kishan (opening batter) and Suryakumar Yadav, the world’s top-ranked T20 batter famed for his all-round hitting and unconventional strokeplay

IPL record: Champions 5 times (2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020), runners-up 2010

Full squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Tim David, Ramandeep Singh, Tilak Varma, Suryakumar Yadav, Ishan Kishan, Tristan Stubbs, Dewald Brevis, Jofra Archer, Arjun Tendulkar, Arshad Khan, Kumar Kartikeya, Hrithik Shokeen, Jason Behrendorff, Akash Madhwal, Cameron Green, Piyush Chawla, Duan Jansen, Vishnu Vinod, Shams Mulani, Nehal Wadhera, Raghav Goyal.

Mumbai Indians paid $1.06 million for Archer in the 2022 auction but the pace ace missed the season because of an elbow injury. This year, the five-time champions brought Green for $2.11 million after an intense bidding war in the auction. In the absence of their Indian pace-spearhead Jasprit Bumrah this year, a lot will rest upon Archer as they hope to bounce back from their horrid bottom-of-the-table finish in 2022. The team has missed out on playoffs two seasons in a row, as well.

Chennai Super Kings

Captain: Mahendra Singh Dhoni

Top foreign players: Moeen Ali (England all-rounder), Devon Conway (New Zealand batter) and Ben Stokes (England all-rounder)

Key Indian players: Ravindra Jadeja (bowling all-rounder) and Ruturaj Gaikwad (batter)

IPL record: Champions four times, (2010, 2011, 2018, 2021), runners-up six times (2008, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2019, 2022)

Full squad: MS Dhoni (c/wk), Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ambati Rayudu, Subhranshu Senapati, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Dwaine Pretorius, Mitchell Santner, Ravindra Jadeja, Tushar Deshpande, *Akash Singh, Matheesha Pathirana, Simarjeet Singh, Deepak Chahar, Prashant Solanki, Maheesh Theekshana, Ajinkya Rahane, Ben Stokes, Shaik Rasheed, Nishant Sindhu, Sisanda Magala, Ajay Mandal, Bhagath Varma.

England Test skipper Stokes, an IPL regular, was bought by Chennai for $1.96 million in the December auction but will only play as a batter at least at the start of the tournament. As speculations around this being Dhoni’s last appearance continue to come and go, CSK would be hoping for Chennai to embrace Stokes and vice-versa, considering they need a leader to step in when Dhoni does decide to call it time. The Jadeja experiment had to be abandoned mid-season itself last year and so how Stokes fares will be especially vital for the Super Kings this season.

IPL 2023: Ben Stokes ready to start as batter but bowling will have to wait, says CSK’s Mike Hussey

Delhi Capitals

Captain: David Warner

Top foreign players: Lungi Ngidi (South Africa fast bowler), Mitchell Marsh (Australia all-rounder)

Key Indian players: Kuldeep Yadav (left-arm wrist spinner) and Axar Patel (bowling all-rounder), who comes into the IPL in red-hot form with his destructive lower-order batting and left-arm spin

IPL record: Runners-up (2020)

Full squad: David Warner (c), Prithvi Shaw, Ripal Patel, Rovman Powell, Sarfaraz Khan, Yash Dhull, Mitchell Marsh, Lalit Yadav, Axar Patel, Anrich Nortje, Chetan Sakariya, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Khaleel Ahmed, Lungi Ngidi, Mustafizur Rahman, Aman Khan, Kuldeep Yadav,

With plenty of IPL leadership experience behind him, Warner was named captain in place of the injured Rishabh Pant after the car crash has kept the dangerous big-hitter out of action since December. The explosive opening duo of Shaw and Warner will have a lot resting on their shoulders, as will in-form Axar Patel, whose batting prowess has found a new story arc. The title has eluded the Delhi franchise and the off-season hasn’t been kind to them in 2023, it remains to be seen if the drought can indeed end this year.

Also read: IPL 2023: Virat Kohli to Cameron Green, five players to watch out for in new season

Lucknow Super Giants

Captain: KL Rahul

Top foreign players: Quinton de Kock (South Africa wicketkeeper-batter), Marcus Stoinis (Australia all-rounder) and Nicholas Pooran (West Indies all-rounder)

Key Indian players: Avesh Khan (bowler) and Jaydev Unadkat (fast bowler)

IPL record: Finished third in their IPL debut last year

Full squad: KL Rahul (c), Ayush Badoni, Karan Sharma, Manan Vohra, Quinton de Kock, Marcus Stoinis, Krishnappa Gowtham, Deepak Hooda, Kyle Mayers, Krunal Pandya, Avesh Khan, Mohsin Khan, Mark Wood, Mayank Yadav, Ravi Bishnoi, Nicholas Pooran, Jaydev Unadkat, Yash Thakur, Romario Shepherd, Daniel Sams, Amit Mishra, Prerak Mankad, Swapnil Singh, Naveen-ul-Haq, Yudhvir Charak.

A top candidate for the playoffs, having shone in their very first edition, LSG will once again be knocking on the doors of the top four if they could crack their home form nice and early. The team’s journey came to an end when they lost the eliminator against RCB. A well-rounded squad with some quality overseas picks, the franchise bolstered their line-up after shelling out $1.95 million for Pooran at the auction this year, a finisher who doubles up as a wicketkeeper option.

Gujarat Titans

Captain: Hardik Pandya

Top foreign players: David Miller (South Africa batter), Rashid Khan (Afghanistan leg-spinner), Kane Williamson (New Zealand batter)

Key Indian players: Shubman Gill (batter) and Mohammed Shami (fast bowler)

IPL record: Champions on debut (2022)

Full squad: Hardik Pandya (c), Shubman Gill, David Miller, Abhinav Manohar, Sai Sudharsan, Wriddhiman Saha, Matthew Wade, Rashid Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Vijay Shankar, Mohammed Shami, Alzarri Joseph, Yash Dayal, Pradeep Sangwan, Darshan Nalkande, Jayant Yadav, R. Sai Kishore, Noor Ahmad, Kane Williamson, Odean Smith, KS Bharat, Shivam Mavi, Urvil Patel, Joshua Little, Mohit Sharma.

Title-winners in their very first edition, the Titans were propelled by some memorable performances by David Miller, Shubman Gill, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Shami and captain Hardik Pandya himself. The team would be hoping to replicate their fairy-tale finish this time around as well, getting the chance to play regularly in front of massive home support expected in Ahmedabad. Williamson joins West Indies fast bowler Odean Smith and Ireland quick Josh Little as the three new overseas recruits this season.

Kolkata Knight Riders

Captain: Nitish Rana (stand-in for injured Shreyas Iyer)

Top foreign players: Andre Russell (West Indies all-rounder), Sunil Narine (West Indies all-rounder), Tim Southee (New Zealand fast bowler)

Key Indian players: Venkatesh Iyer (all-rounder), Varun Chakravarthy (mystery-spinner)

Full squad: Nitish Rana (c), Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Venkatesh Iyer, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakravarthy, Anukul Roy, Rinku Singh, N. Jagadeesan, Vaibhav Arora, Suyash Sharma, David Wiese, Kulwant Khejroliya, Litton Das, Mandeep Singh, Shakib Al Hasan, (Shreyas Iyer could rejoin the squad before the end of the season).

IPL record: The team has been champion twice (2012, 2014) and runners-up once (2021)

KKR find themselves in a dilemma due to Iyer’s unavailability and they didn’t have many options to choose leaders from. Stand-in captain Nitish Rana faces a test in order to propel them from the lower-half of the table from last year to the top four. They have a new coach with proven success in the domestic set-up in Chandrakant Pandit at the helm. There will be a lot of eyes on how the team fares with all these changes, after the rollercoaster of recent seasons.

Punjab Kings

Captain: Shikhar Dhawan

Top foreign players: Liam Livingstone (England batter), Kagiso Rabada (South Africa fast bowler), Sam Curran (England all-rounder)

Key Indian players: Shahrukh Khan – a hard-hitting batter, Arshdeep Singh (lefr-arm pacer)

IPL record: Runners-up when named Kings XI Punjab (2014)

Full squad: Shikhar Dhawan (c), Shahrukh Khan, Matthew Short, Prabhsimran Singh, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma, Raj Bawa, Rishi Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Atharva Taide, Arshdeep Singh, Baltej Singh, Nathan Ellis, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Harpreet Brar, Sam Curran, Sikandar Raza, Harpreet Bhatia, Vidwath Kaverappa, Mohit Rathee, Shivam Singh.

Despite a promising squad, the franchise couldn’t qualify for the playoffs last year. Sam Curran, player of the tournament in the T20 World Cup with his death bowling skills, became the most expensive IPL player ever when Punjab paid $2.23 million for his services. The Dhawan-led franchise would be hoping to end their trophy drought with that X factor Curran can be. The fact that they won’t have Jonny Bairstow available for the season is, however, a big blow.

Rajasthan Royals

Captain: Sanju Samson

Top foreign players: Jos Buttler (England wicketkeeper-batter), Trent Boult (New Zealand fast bowler), Shimron Hetmyer (West Indies batter)

Key Indian players: Yuzvendra Chahal (leg-spinner) and Ravichandran Ashwin (off-spinner)

Full squad: Sanju Samson (c/wk), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shimron Hetmyer, Devdutt Padikkal, Jos Buttler, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Sandeep Sharma, Trent Boult, Obed McCoy, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Sen, Kuldip Yadav, R Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, KC Cariappa, Jason Holder, Donovan Ferreira, Kunal Rathore, Adam Zampa, KM Asif, Murugan Ashwin, Akash Vashisht, Abdul P A, Joe Root.

IPL record: Champions in inaugural edition in 2008 under late Australian great Shane Warne

Runners-up in the previous edition, the Royals rode on the back of a stellar season for Jos Buttler. A solid opening pair in Buttler and promising Jaiswal, the dynamic captaincy of Samson and a diverse bowling attack ensures they remain contenders for the top four spot again. Their spin attack was also crucial in last season’s run. Watch out for Jaiswal as well as Riyan Parag, as they come into this season on the back of some stellar performances at the domestic level.

Royal Challengers Bangalore

Captain: Faf du Plessis

Top foreign players: Glenn Maxwell (Australia all-rounder), Reece Topley (England left-arm quick), Josh Hazlewood (Australia fast bowler - doubtful due to achilles injury)

Key Indian players: Virat Kohli (batter), Mohammed Siraj (fast bowler), Dinesh Karthik (wicketkeeper-batter)

IPL record: Runners-up three times (2009, 2011, 2016)

Full squad: Faf du Plessis (c), Virat Kohli, Suyash Prabhudessai, Rajat Patidar (doubtful), Dinesh Karthik, Anuj Rawat, Finn Allen, Glenn Maxwell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Shahbaz Ahmed, Harshal Patel, David Willey, Karn Sharma, Mahipal Lomror, Mohammed Siraj, Josh Hazlewood, Siddarth Kaul, Akash Deep, Reece Topley, Himanshu Sharma, Michael Bracewell, Manoj Bhandage, Rajan Kumar, Avinash Singh, Sonu Yadav.

After a change in leadership last year, du Plessis and Co reached the playoffs thanks to some inspired performances by the captain himself, Dinesh Karthik and Rajat Patidar. This year, they would be hoping for Kohli and Maxwell to step up and complement them. Additionally, Siraj would be hoping to return to his best after a relatively underwhelming show last year. His form with the white ball has been impressive for India in recent months. Will this be their year finally?

Sunrisers Hyderabad

Captain: Aiden Markram

Top foreign players: Marco Jansen (South Africa bowling all-rounder), Heinrich Klaasen (South Africa batter), Harry Brook (England batter)

Key Indian players: Bhuvneshwar Kumar (Seam bowler), Washington Sundar (Spin bowler), Umran Malik (Fast bowler)

IPL record: Champions once (2016)

Full squad: Aiden Markram (c), Abdul Samad, Rahul Tripathi, Glenn Phillips, Abhishek Sharma, Marco Jansen, Washington Sundar, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Kartik Tyagi, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T. Natarajan, Umran Malik, Harry Brook, Mayank Agarwal, Heinrich Klaasen, Adil Rashid, Mayank Markande, Vivrant Sharma, Samarth Vyas, Sanvir Singh, Upendra Yadav, Mayank Dagar, Nitish Kumar Reddy, Akeal Hosein, Anmolpreet Singh.

A major change took place when captain Kane Williamson’s services were not acquired by the franchise in the auction. As a result, Aiden Markram, who led Sunrisers Eastern Cape to a title win in the inaugural edition of the SA20, was appointed as captain recently. West Indies great and Sunrisers head coach Brian Lara called Brook “young and exciting” after the 24-year-old was signed by the team for $1.6 million. He has captured the imagination of many cricket followers around the world, across formats, and will be without a doubt a player to watch out for this year. All eyes will also be on speedster Umran Malik too after his success over the last year and Mayank Agarwal, looking for a change of fortunes with a change of franchise.

With text inputs from AFP