Ravi Shastri names his top Teams and Players for IPL 2025

In 2025, the Indian Premier League (IPL) will open its 18th season, attracting fans of cricket around the globe. The league will be held this year from March 22 to May 25, when it will feature 10 teams in 74 playings. The overall tournament also enjoys high viewership, a fact borne out by both the packed stadiums at each game point and broadcasts now undertaken throughout Asia and beyond.

A character now generating attention is Ravi Shastri, a cricket player who is a coach and match analyst. Shastri has given the public his picks for which teams and players are most likely to shine in IPL 2025. He is a figure who commands respect from both ordinary observers and people involved in the game.

Ravi Shastri’s Cricketing Background

His brand of storytelling makes Ravi Shastri’s IPL 2025 predictions worth taking seriously. Beginning with his India debut in 1981, Shastri played 80 Test matches and 150 One-Day Internationals as an all-rounder over a career that stretched into the early 1990s.

His early success was the 1983 World Cup victory, a milestone in Indian cricket. Fans seeking information about the forthcoming season from provider to Stake.com these days will find full details there. In 1985, he won the Player of the Tournament award and was named Man-of-the-Series in both Benson & Hedges World Championship events. He scored 182 runs and taking eight wickets with his left-arm spin.

Later, as India’s head coach from 2017 to 2021, Shastri enjoyed a very successful period with the Test team. Most notable in these years was winning a historic series in Australia during 2018-19.

Here, India walked away one series up—the first time any side had ever achieved this feat on foreign soil. This was followed nine months later by another bumper year despite an especially weak side. His coaching tactics instil a craving for preparation and team spirit, providing regular and balanced results.

Shastri’s Top Teams for IPL 2025

Going into the 2025 games, Shastri named four teams that he expected to be in the lead: Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings, Kolkata Knight Riders, and Rajasthan Royals. Each club has its own particular strength that contributes to its success. Mumbai Indians is a record five-time winner, with titles in five different IPLs.

The Chennai Super King may be best known for an even style that, when all is said and done, makes them perform well in tough situations. A 2024 winner, Kolkata Knight Riders add momentum and team with everyone else. Rajasthan Royals score thrilling wins more often than not—their dynamic style often outperforms the big boys in this business.

Mumbai Indians

Mumbai Indians are one of the most successful teams of the IPL, and Shastri sees them as a strong contender in 2025. The team has also been crowned champions on five separate occasions during its last seven outings—in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020. That experience shows their ability to produce the goods when it matters most.

The captain of Mumbai Indians is Hardik Pandya. Opinions about his leadership vary, but Hardik has shown ability at crucial moments. This includes the 2020 season when his batting and bowling ensured they grabbed the championship trophy.

In 2024, Mumbai once again ranked among the top four teams. They were strengthened with some smart player acquisitions when the new season came around, too.

Trent Boult, a fast bowler from New Zealand, remains a key plank in their strategy. In 2024, he took 16 wickets and used pace and movement to challenge batsmen. Shastri mentions the perseverance of Mumbai. He says that once they gain momentum, it’s difficult to contain them.

Chennai Super Kings

Shastri thinks the Chennai Super Kings 2025 will be able to have a competitive season because of the team’s reputation for reliability. In 2024, the unassuming, spirited captain of the team, Ruturaj Gaikwad, led them to a semi-final berth together with his calm and thoughtful tactics.

Unlike other teams, this squad is composed of players with considerable past experience who are also consistently contributing at present. Ravindra Jadeja is a shining example. In his Indian Premier League career, 160 wickets and over 2,000 runs tell a tale of just how valuable he truly is for any team in the world.

In 2024, he took 267 runs after over long middle overs during matches, even up to an opponent’s innings while taking a few fast wickets himself here and there now and then. This helped to ensure our opponents had little left at the end of their innings.

Chennai has shown how flexible they can be. Faster bowlers working in tandem with spinners such as Maheesh Theekshana. Rather than seeming excited to get excited in a place outside of home town, Shastri has remarked on their ability to keep cool and get the best out of other teams.

Kolkata Knight Riders

Kolkata Knight Riders will go into the IPL 2025 season the reigning champions, having taken the 2024 title. Shastri thinks they can claim it again. The captain, Shreyas Iyer, used some smart tactics to lead the team to their third championship, after the IPL victories of 2012 and 2014.

Sunil Narine is still an important figure for the team. In 2024, he took 15 wickets with his off-spin bowling and made 500 runs, but his greatest contributions were to bury games with combinations of bat-positive bowling and dead-ant techniques alike.

In the 2024 season of nearly 7 months, the winning formula was for even coverage. The fast bowlers (like Vaibhav Arora) hit their stride and the spinners came in, combining that with some good batting from both ends.

Shastri has remarked that Kolkata now has the confidence of champions and is playing with great boldness. Returning with most of their league-winning squad, they hope not only to retain their elitist crown in just 6 months, but to extend this into a period of victory.

Rajasthan Royals

Rajasthan Royals have the capacity to surprise other teams, said Shastri, and this may continue in 2025. Last year in 2024 they finished third playing off the back of a strong playoff performance and with their characteristic energetic style.

The captain, Sanju Samson, is known for his graceful batting but packing a punch physically. In 2024 he scored a personal best 531 runs. They also have an addition like Yashasvi Jaiswal who, from his opening position in the order, strengthens their batting with his confident but aggressive approach to stroke play.

About their bowling attack, Jofra Archer gives them pace and the ability to take wickets at an early stage of opposition innings, while Yuzvendra Chahal picked up 17 wickets in 2024 by means of spin to control matters during middle overs.

Shastri’s Players to Watch in IPL 2025

In Indian Premier League matches, individual performances often make all the difference. And just who can we expect to shine this year? Not without some study of form prospects, though; his decisions are based on years of tracking young talent and an intimate knowledge of what works for a player in this league.

Each has a different advantage they give their team and different abilities, which may tip a match. The choices Shastri makes contain a blend of old hands and newcomers. It shows how the IPL brings together world-class veterans with brand-new stars. Here is a snapshot of those whom he rates:

• Rishabh Pant (Delhi Capitals): Rishabh Pant has established himself as one of the most explosive talents in the IPL. In 113 matches by the end of IPL 2024, he has collected 3,284 runs at an average of 35. Of those, he scored 18 fifties and one centuries, displaying his ability to terrorise bowlers in an explosive mix of power and finesse.
• Yashasvi Jaiswal (Rajasthan Royals): Just 23, Jaiswal is proving himself well able to handle the IPL. He tallied 625 runs in 2023 and added a brace of centuries in 2024, playing a hard-driving brand that puts bowlers on the back foot. Shastri looks to him as a fledgling man ready for success.
• Ravindra Jadeja (Chennai Super Kings): Jadeja has chipped in 160 wickets and 2,806 runs in his IPL career. He gives the side the cutting edge of his spin bowling, his ability to bat in tough situations, plus razor-sharp fielding. Shastri admires how he shapes matches from multiple angles.

Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant has proved he is one of the most explosive talents in the Indian Premier League with the Delhi Capitals. By the end of IPL 2024, he recorded 113 matches, 3,284 runs. He has hit 18 half-centuries and 1 century to date, showing that Pant blends power with intelligent batting skill to take on the bowlers.

Pant’s strength is his play under pressure. He has played many match-winning innings in his own right, including 50 runs from 25 balls in the final of IPL 2024 to beat Mumbai Indians.

Past displays include 51 off 32 balls against Chennai Super Kings in 2021. This won Delhi Capitals significant points. These innings are testimony to Pant’s skill for thriving in tight situations.

Yashasvi Jaiswal

A young batsman from Rajasthan Royals, Yashasvi Jaiswal has captured Shastri’s attention as a possible star for the IPL in 2025. He is just 23, but has already created some history in the league. In 2023, a strike rate that was among the highest helped him to carve out for himself. He hit 625 runs.

This was followed by two hundred in 2024. He uses the foundations of his training correctly but also has great flair when needed. Jaiswal already has Shastri’s attention. He not only represents the future of Indian cricket but is ready to make a big impact on the national team now.

With Sanju Samson in charge and as part of the offensive play in Rajasthan, Jaiswal has everyone supporting him. If he continues to perform at this level, it could well affect his team’s standing throughout the campaign.

Ravindra Jadeja

For the Chennai Super Kings, maintaining Ravindra Jadeja as an X factor remains fundamentally important, Shastri pointed out in 2025. He has played in 242 matches in the IPL, taking 160 wickets and amassing 3,001 runs.

But his influence on the side goes far beyond figures. He hit 29.27 runs on average last year and in the fifth position, usually batting hurriedly. He also remained very solid as a bowler in middle overs with an economy rate of 2.53.

And his fielding really does add value, whether chunking them over to Bevan or hiding behind the stumps to catch snares. Shastri praises Jadeja, noting how he can turn games with his all-around performance.

IPL 2025’s Wider Influence

In 2025, the IPL extended its reach beyond games and thus played a pivotal role in reshaping cricket. This has always been a tournament where new talent is discovered and old hands polish their skills, a trend that Shastri predicts about this season.

He has drawn attention to young talents such as Yashasvi Jaiswal (who might become an important player for Rajasthan Royals) and Rishabh Pant has, with his strength Delhi Capitals stand on. Experience combined with potential is a feature so characteristic of the IPL that it amounts to bridging present and future cricket.

In 2024 the league introduced a regulation on ‘Impact Players’, allowing teams to change players during the course of a match and thus underlining the captain’s decisions. Similar adjustments will likely happen in 2025, extending the process by which a game unfolds.

Shastri’s Call—Spot On or Off the Mark?

For IPL 2025, Ravi Shastri is expecting a strong performance from Mumbai Indians, Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders. He picks Rajasthan Royals back on form as an early bet to make the playoffs. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ravindra Jadeja can be expected to play major roles in 2025.

Shastri’s years as a player, coach and commentator have given him a deep knowledge of cricket that informs his predictions. Kolkata Knight Riders, for example, suffered in 2023 yet in the following season sprung back from its neglect. While in the past, Shastri’s judgment has often turned out to be correct, the nature of this league is that no one knows what will happen.