IPL 2020: After 49 Matches Over 40 Days, 4-Time Champs MI Become 1st Team To Qualify For Playoffs

After 49 round robin matches overs 40 days of intense competition between eight teams in the marquee T20 league, the thirteenth season of the IPL finally had Mumbai Indians as the first playoff qualifier.

Photo: @IPL (Twitter)

Defending champions Mumbai Indians (MI) officially became the first team to qualify for IPL 2020 playoffs after Chennai Super Kings ( CSK) beat Kolkata Knight Riders ( KKR) in Match 49 of Season 13 at Dubai on Thursday (Oct 29). After 49 round robin matches overs 40 days of intense competition between eight teams in the marquee T20 league, the thirteenth season of the IPL finally had Mumbai Indians as the first playoff qualifier. A win for MI in one of their remaining two matches will guarantee them a top finish at the culmination of the league stage of the tournament Mumbai comfortable sit on the top of the IPL 2020 points table with eight wins in twelve games. Being the only team with 16 points in the bank, they also have a healthy net run rate +1.186. Chennai Super Kings inflicted a massive blow to fifth-placed KKR's chances of a playoff berth as Dhoni and Co. registered a thrilling win over the 'Purple Brigade' in Dubai on Thursday. KKR's loss to CSK meant that they continued to remain at 12 points and will now need a massive win in their remaining fixture to qualify for the knockouts. KKR will also hope that RCB, KXIP and SRH fail to win the remainder of their games. Chennai Super Kings who are already out of the playoff race registered their fifth win of the season courtesy their win over Kolkata Knight Riders and added two more points to their kitty.. With 14 points each, second-placed Royal Challengers Bangalore and third-spot Delhi Capitals are also a win way from making it to the knockouts in Season 13 of the IPL. A win in one of the two remaining matches for DC and RCB will see them qualify for the next round with relative ease but a defeat could also see them miss out on a playoff spot by a whisker. Wins in both the matches will see Delhi Capitals finish in the top two. Fourth-placed Kings XI Punjab have a strong chance of bolstering their play-off berth when they take on Rajasthan Royals later in the evening. With 12 points in their bank, a win over RR will take them to 14 points. Punjab will also need to win their final league fixture against CSK to make it to the playoffs for the first time since 2014. Even a single defeat could prove costly for their play-off fortunes.