The Top Order Cricket Podcast · The Top Order Podcast

IPL Preview Show 2026 - Part 1: RR, LSG, KKR, DC & PBKS

·46 min·1 clip

Scored 175 in the final of 80 balls at the under-19 World Cup.

This is the opening half of the show's IPL 2026 preview. The panel says it will take teams one through five here and save six through 10 for the next episode, so the season build-up is split into two clean runs rather than one long list. They also promise the usual Top Order awards. Those include the orange hat, the purple hat, the overseas MVP, the domestic MVP, plus the odd bold prediction. The tone stays loose and familiar, which suits the show. Most of the episode is less about hype and more about how the squads actually fit together. The longest stretch in the segment turns to the LSG. The hosts work through who should start, and the names that come up include Markram, Marsh, Pooran, and Hasaranga if he is fit. From there, they move through the rest of the bowling options without trying to dress it up. Shami, Abish Khan, and the other support pieces are treated like the job is just as important as the headline names. That is where the worry sits. The bowling looks like the weak point, and the team may need one more uncapped player or one more fit bowler before the attack feels safe. There is still room for optimism, though. If the bowling group settles and the fit pieces line up, the whole shape of the XI changes pretty quickly. That kind of turn is exactly what the show likes to pick at. The panel keeps asking what the Plan A is and whether the fallback plans really get a side to eight or nine wins. That is where the conversation gets useful, because it stops being abstract and starts becoming selection logic. The episode also spends time on the less glamorous parts of roster building. Backup roles matter here, and the conversation treats them that way. The fifth, sixth, or seventh bowling choice is not just bench noise. It is the sort of detail that can swing a match or two over a long season. The hosts do not try to make that sound bigger than it is. They just stay with the cricketing reality of it. Across the segment, the show stays grounded in roles, match-ups, and the practical work of building a side that can survive the tournament. That gives the preview a sharper edge than a simple team-by-team rundown. It feels like cricket talk for people who care about overs, not slogans.

As heard by us

An IPL preview that cares most about balance, roles, and whether the bowling holds together.

The preview opens the IPL 2026 season map with the first five teams and stays on the practical questions that actually matter: squad balance, death-overs coverage, and where the overseas pieces land.

Read the full review in PlayNext →

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Hear the episode-one half of the IPL 2026 preview.

Read the full recommendation in PlayNext →

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