In the Indian Premier League, each team plays 14 games in a season, with 7 games being played at home. Teams often work with the pitch curators to make the pitch favourable to their team in terms of their strengths. For example, Chepauk has been the fortress for CSK over the years, and they have built their team accordingly, based on the nature of the wicket. The Chennai Super Kings ensure they acquire the best spinners every year, as this year they have players like Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, and Noor Ahmad to bowl on their home turf. It’s very important to have a home advantage in the IPL as even the smallest of differences can cause huge impacts, and most teams tend to make most of their home games. But some teams fail to do so as they have pitches that are generally flat and with short boundaries. So those teams might not have the bowling attack to defend a decent score, and finding the right combination to get on track could be challenging. So, Let’s take a look at the teams with the most losses at home:
5. Punjab Kings- IS Bindra Stadium
IS Bindra stadium is the home ground of the Punjab Kings in the Indian Premier League and they have a decent record at home. They have won 30 games out of the 61 games that they have played at home. Punjab Kings just doesn’t seem to have found the right winning formula at home as they haven’t been able to guard their home ground many occasions. This ground has been favourable for the teams that bat in the 2nd innings. Batting first might create a sense of confusion in their minds in terms of the total that needs to be set and they often tend to go hard in the process of helping the team reach a decent total. Batting second might make it easy for the batsman with the dew factor coming in to play which makes it difficult for the bowling side. Punjab Kings need to make the best out of their home conditions to see them through to their maiden IPL title.
4.Mumbai Indians- Wankhede Stadium
Mumbai Indians, the joint most successful team in the IPL, has been tested at their home conditions by the visiting teams. The dimensions of the Wankhede stadium are quite favourable for batsmen as the boundary lengths are short, and they necessarily don’t need to time the ball to perfection to get it over the boundary line. Batting heavy sides have dominated the contests so far, and the pitch is comparatively favourable to pacers. Mumbai Indians have played 87 games at home, and they have lost 34 games. They have had a poor run at home and will be looking to change things around this season.
3. Kolkata Knight Riders- Eden Gardens
The Kolkata Knight Riders have been quite a successful side in the tournament as they have won 3 IPL titles. But their records at home haven’t been great across seasons as they have lost 38 games from the 91 games that they have played. Eden Gardens has been a historic venue for cricket over the years but KKR hasn’t had the best of memories at the venue. Teams batting second has had the upper hand with the dew factor coming into play but poor record of the home side hasn’t been much of a concern for them as they are quite consistent away from home and never fail to pick the big names in the auction.
2. Delhi Capitals- Arun Jaitley Stadium
Delhi hasn’t been the best of sides in the tournament across the years until they changed the name of the franchise. They have never won the IPL trophy despite having a top-quality team that performs consistently. The teams batting second have been dominant, but if the team that bats first sets up a big enough total on board, it could make things challenging for the opposition. Delhi will have to look at making the best of their home conditions in order to secure the playoff spot and win their maiden IPL title. Delhi have lost 44 games out of the 82 that they have played at home.
1. Royal Challengers Bengaluru- M Chinnaswamy Stadium
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru has had the worst record at home as they lose a significant amount of matches at home every time they play. RCB hasn’t had many star bowlers over the years, and their bowling has let them down over the years. They have always been known for their phenomenal batting prowess with the legends of the game like Virat Kohli, Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers. The only bowler that has been able to control the leakage of runs at the Chinnaswamy stadium is Yuzvendra Chahal, and he has been the best bowler for RCB in their history. If RCB intend to make themselves a strong contender for their maiden IPL trophy, they’ll have to improve their home record. RCB has lost 45 matches from the 93 games that they have played at home.
