The bench revolution: Why squad depth will decide IPL 2026?

The 2026 edition of the Indian Premier League is off to a great start on the field as all four teams smashed a plethora of runs in the first two matches. In this analytical preview, Eoin Morgan – Chief Cricket Analyst, Parimatch, one of the game’s most respected cricket minds – delivers a comprehensive breakdown of the upcoming IPL 2026 season and why bench strength could decide the winner of the league at the business end of the season.

The build-up to the 19th edition of the Indian Premier League was very unique in terms of players getting ruled out or pulling out of the IPL 2026 season, forcing the IPL franchises to rejig their plans ahead of the season, as their preferred starting XI or XII would never see the light of day due to the aforementioned reasons.

Several fast bowlers, including the Australian troika of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood, have informed their respective franchises that they will be joining in the second half of the season. This list also includes Kiwi fast bowler Lockie Ferguson, who has pulled out of the first half of the season due to personal reasons.

Apart from these players, several fast bowlers sustained injuries in the recently concluded T20 World Cup or in the lead-up to the IPL and will not be participating in the upcoming season as well, throwing Plan A of several franchises straight into the bin.

Eoin stresses the importance of breaks and mental health

Every player aims to be part of the esteemed international tournaments like the ICC Cricket World Cup, ICC T20 World Cup, and the ICC World Test Championship. To achieve these ambitions, most of the players try to be available for the bilateral tours and other international matches that might impact their selection for the big ICC tournaments.

Apart from playing in these international matches for a major portion of the year, the players also have to dedicate a major chunk of their short-lived careers at the top by playing T20 franchise leagues to maintain financial independence at the end of their cricketing peak.

After a burnout of playing cricket for 11 to 12 months every year, the players have spent the least amount of time at home with their families and loved ones, leaving no space to recharge or reboot mentally, which ultimately impacts their on-field performances.

Several Indian players like Virat Kohli and Jemimah Rodrigues have spoken out loudly in favor of mental health breaks in recent times before lifting major ICC trophies. 

Even Ishan Kishan had to skip a major domestic tournament to take a mental health break, which made him lose out on his central contract, but the player returned hungrier than ever to help India win the 2026 ICC T20 World Cup in front of their own fans.

I have spoken about the issue previously as well, especially during the Covid period, as bio-bubbles were making it tough for everybody to stay away from their families for a prolonged period. I am glad that the cricketing world has now started taking mental health breaks as important as recovering from physical injuries, because if you are not 100% beween the ears, you can never give your best on the field.

Morgan feels building a strong squad is the key to win 2-month leagues like the IPL

Unlike previous IPL mini-auctions, where a few overseas players commanded most of the remaining budgets of the franchises, the decision makers of several franchises majorly focused on recruiting appropriate backups and increasing squad depth in the 2026 IPL mini-auction.

Elite-level coaches with multiple years of IPL experience, like Mahela Jayawardene and Ricky Ponting, have also stressed the importance of having adequate backups in the squad down to the 25th player. 

The teams are now focusing on bagging their first targets along with a like-for-like backup player, to reduce the number of changes if a single player with a unique skillset in the squad gets ruled out for a period of multiple matches.

With the focus shifting from making a great team of 11 or 12 players to building an adequate squad of 24 to 25 players which can win the title despite missing a couple of key players at different stages of the league, it is finally being seen as a welcome change by players and fans alike.

If we look at the teams that made it to the final last year, RCB and PBKS, both are missing crucial fast bowlers in the form of Hazlewood and Ferguson, respectively, but both franchises did some smart work and ensured that they had proper backups in Jacob Duffy and Xavier Bartlett in their respective squads.

If we look at the batting depth of both teams, RCB has done well to add Venkatesh Iyer, who could replace one of the overseas batters if the defending champions want to play both Duffy and Hazlewood in the starting XI later in the season.

On the other hand, the Kings have added Cooper Connolly to their squad to replace Josh Inglis, and the young left-hander had a dream debut in the IPL as he played a match-winning innings in the season opener, helping his team get off to the perfect start at home.

Mumbai Indians have the riches of a playing XI which features players with international experience at almost every position, but their backups are also of rich quality, ensuring that MI faces no hiccup at any stage of the season.

Even when we won the 2019 ICC Cricket World Cup, we had four batters in Joe Root, Jonny Bairstow, Ben Stokes, and Jason Roy in the Top 10 run-scorers, while Jofra Archer, Mark Wood, and Chris Woakes finished in the Top 10 wicket-takers, enabling our side with team performances rather than depending on one star name.