My review of the playoff teams, now that the tournament is over:
Rajasthan Royals: Had a very underwhelming season and one must say, they gave the feeling to the audience that they were 'not deserving of the playoff spot' ahead of teams like Mumbai and RCB. The captaincy and decision making was confusing for the most part and Ajinkya Rahane handled his own batting position in a very sloppy manner. Buttler's move to the top was what helped Rajasthan qualify at the last minute but the moment Buttler left for national duty, no one else took over the lead from him. They tried to replicate the Rising Pune Supergiants formula from 2017, but failed miserably at it. Steve Smith's unavailability hurt them more because they missed his captaincy which was a factor in Pune's run to the final last season. They will have a lot of thinking to do next season - where to fit Rahane more so when Smith comes back. For them, Tripathi and Buttler are sure shot options for the top but Rahane can't bat anywhere else.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Had a pretty good season and extremely well led by Dinesh Karthik. Their bowling continues to be dominated by the spinners and they have an extremely dangerous spin attack with Narine, Kuldeep and Chawla. Robin Uthappa and Lynn's patchy form this season hurt them a lot and it was invariably left to Karthik and Russell to propel them forward. Also their overseas seamer slot never worked for them and needs a relook. I think Mitch Johnson is done and they need to look past him. I like the way KKR invested in Gill, Mavi and the likes and it could pay rich dividends for them in the upcoming seasons.
Sunrisers Hyderbad: Best team of the tournament and just wonder how they missed that title. Everyone knows how outstanding a bowling attack they had. Also their batting started firing at the right time, carried forward by their captain who was also the Orange Cap holder. They lost steam towards the ending stages of the league phase where they might think cracks started developing and teams felt more confident because of it. I think their middle order was a very weak spot especially with Manish Pandey being a star failure this season. Yusuf, Shakib, Braithwaite and Hooda are decent but they need a few proper batsmen in the middle who can inspire more confidence. David Warner's return should help stabilize the top but I would continue with Kane Williamson as captain. To me, he is the calmer head and IMHO such captains have higher probability of doing well (as seen this IPL with the likes of Dhoni, Williamson, Karthik, etc vs the likes of Kohli, Gambhir, Rohit, etc).
Chennai Super Kings: I still am finding it hard to believe they won the title!! Spoken a lot about them throughout this season. Things fell for them at the right place with the players performing when it was absolutely needed. That's all I can say. I am sure a lot of other people will be scratching their heads right now to understand how in the world did CSK win the title with such a team. The bowling definitely looked weak for most part of the tournament. The fielding also looked ragged for most part of the tournament. What helped massively was the feel good factor of the side returning after a hiatus, the talismanic captain and the legend MSD and the bonding atmosphere that was created by the owners who have always stuck to a core with such stubborn-ness that it has now become a model for other teams. From an upcoming season perspective, CSK need to be careful the most because the nostalgia and the honeymoon period is over and their 'dad's army' will get a year older and will become harder to keep them fit and focused. We cannot have comparatively younger players getting unfit and losing games (e.g. Jadhav, Raina, Santner, etc). Hopefully Santner and Jadhav's return in the next seasons should further bolster the team in the middle overs. Lungi Ngidi is going to be a force for CSK in the next two years and I can't wait to see that. I hope they can keep David Willey and maybe release Imran Tahir if necessary. Willey did not do anything with the bat this season but he can be a terror with the bat. If the IPL is held outside India next year, Willey will be crucial to the plans.