 "Bookies' boys")
It's still early days in the sixth edition of the Indian Premier League. The new players are settling in, combinations are being tried out and teams are trying to find their feet. Yet the betting markets seem to have seen enough to pronounce their favourites. Aabhas Sharma looks at the four teams whose stock runs high with the bookmakers, why the four are tipped to make it to the semi-finals and what can trip them on the way.
MUMBAI INDIANS
Odds: 10/3 The bookmakers' favourites. Most betting sites feel Mukesh Ambani's team will go all the way.
Why bet on it? A combative team with match-winners like Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar in the side. Enough batting depth with the likes of Rohit Sharma, Philip Hughes in their ranks. Add to that its impact players Kieron Pollard and Lasith Malingal.
CHENNAI SUPER KINGS
Odds: 11/4 IPL's most consistent team over five years. No surprise that the odds are in its favour.
Why bet on it? One of the most experienced teams in IPL with players who excel in T20 format. For all the jokes doing the rounds on him, Ravindra Jadeja is more than a handy allrounder for Chennai. There's M S Dhoni, the experience of Michael Hussey and Suresh Raina and the penetrative power of Dirk Nannes. And don't forget Ravichandra Ashwin's guiles.
What can upset the odds? Lack of fast bowling options. The team lacks a bowler who can run through a batting order. It has two foreign fast bowlers which means they can only play two overseas batsmen.
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS
Odds: 11/10 The defending champions. The team has started slowly but looks like coming into form. Up there on the list as a dark horse.
Why bet on it? A settled team - it didn't buy many players in the last auction, so doesn't have the problem of players settling in. Strong batting line up - and captain Gautam Gambhir is in good form - and it has potential match-winners like Jacques Kallis, Yusuf Pathan and Eoin Morgan. Sunil Narine has proved he can demolish batting line-ups.
What can upset the odds? Pretty inconsistent team as you are not sure which Knight Riders -the winners or the chokers - will turn up to play. Like Chennai, it lacks a good fast bowler. L Balaji who is past his prime is the team's main pace bowler, which speaks about its lack of bowling options.
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE
Odds: 7/2 The most mercurial side in the IPL. The team is bookmakers' certain choice as semi-finalist.
Why bet on it? Chris Gayle. Such is the impact he can have that Gayle can literally turn a match on its head in a space of three overs. Then there are the consistent, combative Virat Kohli and AB De Villiers, plus the all-round abilities of Moises Henriques and the bravado of Ravi Rampaul.
What can upset the odds? The team might have Mutthiah Muralitharan on its books but lacks spinners who come in handy on Indian pitches. Its next best spinner is Murali Kartik, which means its reliance on an out-of-form Muralitharan is high. The team struggles to bowl out opposition or contain them. In 119 overs so far, it has conceded 915 runs.
MUMBAI INDIANS
Odds: 10/3 The bookmakers' favourites. Most betting sites feel Mukesh Ambani's team will go all the way.
Why bet on it? A combative team with match-winners like Ricky Ponting and Sachin Tendulkar in the side. Enough batting depth with the likes of Rohit Sharma, Philip Hughes in their ranks. Add to that its impact players Kieron Pollard and Lasith Malingal.
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What can upset the odds? So far the players haven't lived up to their potential. If Tendulkar and Ponting - patchy till date - don't deliver, the team could be in trouble at the business end of the league. Harbhajan Singh's form is a cause of concern as well. In the first five matches, he has only taken six wickets. Rohit Sharma and Pollard are both inconsistent.
CHENNAI SUPER KINGS
Odds: 11/4 IPL's most consistent team over five years. No surprise that the odds are in its favour.
Why bet on it? One of the most experienced teams in IPL with players who excel in T20 format. For all the jokes doing the rounds on him, Ravindra Jadeja is more than a handy allrounder for Chennai. There's M S Dhoni, the experience of Michael Hussey and Suresh Raina and the penetrative power of Dirk Nannes. And don't forget Ravichandra Ashwin's guiles.
What can upset the odds? Lack of fast bowling options. The team lacks a bowler who can run through a batting order. It has two foreign fast bowlers which means they can only play two overseas batsmen.
KOLKATA KNIGHT RIDERS
Odds: 11/10 The defending champions. The team has started slowly but looks like coming into form. Up there on the list as a dark horse.
Why bet on it? A settled team - it didn't buy many players in the last auction, so doesn't have the problem of players settling in. Strong batting line up - and captain Gautam Gambhir is in good form - and it has potential match-winners like Jacques Kallis, Yusuf Pathan and Eoin Morgan. Sunil Narine has proved he can demolish batting line-ups.
What can upset the odds? Pretty inconsistent team as you are not sure which Knight Riders -the winners or the chokers - will turn up to play. Like Chennai, it lacks a good fast bowler. L Balaji who is past his prime is the team's main pace bowler, which speaks about its lack of bowling options.
ROYAL CHALLENGERS BANGALORE
Odds: 7/2 The most mercurial side in the IPL. The team is bookmakers' certain choice as semi-finalist.
Why bet on it? Chris Gayle. Such is the impact he can have that Gayle can literally turn a match on its head in a space of three overs. Then there are the consistent, combative Virat Kohli and AB De Villiers, plus the all-round abilities of Moises Henriques and the bravado of Ravi Rampaul.
What can upset the odds? The team might have Mutthiah Muralitharan on its books but lacks spinners who come in handy on Indian pitches. Its next best spinner is Murali Kartik, which means its reliance on an out-of-form Muralitharan is high. The team struggles to bowl out opposition or contain them. In 119 overs so far, it has conceded 915 runs.