Why pace won at IPL auction

About two-thirds of the total spend was on pacers and given their impact of late, it seems like a safe bet 

- Sanjjeev K Samyal

The two-bouncer per over rule in the Indian Premier League will certainly make fast bowlers more effective this season. Previously, the batters could relax after facing a bouncer early in the over knowing that there would be no more short balls coming their way in the over. Now, the bowlers will have one more card up their sleeves and it may not seem like much but it does change the game.

The rule may have directly or indirectly influenced the franchisees at the auction table on Tuesday as fast bowlers proved to be the most precious commodity at the event.

It was clear that most of the teams were focused on bolstering their pace attack. Some, like the Royal Challengers Bangalore, looked for a complete revamp of their attack while others wanted to pick the best in the market and strengthen their line-up.

A study of the successful teams and you can see the reasons for the teams looking to build their pace arsenal. For last year's runners-up Gujarat Titans, Mohammed Shami picked 28 wickets in 17 games while Mohit Sharma claimed 27 in 14. For winners, Chennai Super Kings, Tushar Deshpande claimed 19 wickets in 16 games and Matheesha Pathirana had 19 wickets in 12 games.

Five-time champions, Mumbai Indians have built their title-winning spree on excellent fast bowling performances. When you look at their history what stands out is how their success has been built around fast bowling exploits of Lasith Malinga, Mitchell Johnson, Jasprit Bumrah and Trent Boult.

Then, in the 2022 IPL season, 16 among the top 20 wicket-takers were pace bowlers.

Batters, spinners lose out