New Delhi, April 23: Arguably the most ‘elite’ Twenty20 league in the world, there is plenty at stake for the eight franchises to do well in Season 2 of the Indian Premier League.

To ensure that the IPL remains ‘Indian’, the governing council enforced a rule of allowing only four foreign players in the playing XI. However, very few teams have managed to get their balance right this time as the foreign and Indian stars are carrying the burden of at least a couple of non-performers in the team.

IPL-2 has been no different. Here’s a look at some of the ‘liabilities’ amongst the eight franchises seen so far:

Chennai Super Kings: Last year’s runners-up fielded Tamil Nadu off-spinner R. Ashwin in their opening match against the Mumbai Indians. On the surface that provided plenty of assistance to the pacers, Ashwin though didn’t bowl a single over.

Deccan Chargers: The Chargers fielded a balanced side in both their matches, which translated into emphatic wins. However, the same cannot be said about D. Ravi Teja. With a batting line-up led by Adam Gilchrist, Herchelle Gibbs, and Rohit Sharma, Hyderabad’s Teja, with a modest List-A average of 30, is left to bide his time coming in at 8 or 9 in the batting order with only a few balls to face.

Delhi Daredevils: After stacking up their side with powerful big-hitters, Daredevils are carrying players like Aavishkar Salvi in their bowling attack. Salvi, who hasn’t appeared in a single first-class match for home side Mumbai in the last two year, is taking a hammering.

Kolkata Knight Riders: KKR are high on the glamour quotient but also have a couple of inexplicable selections. Aakash Chopra — a quintessential Test opener — has been asked to play an unfamiliar role of aggressor for the Knight Riders. Yashpal Singh, a prolific batsman for Services in Ranji Plate division, is also just in the side to fill up the numbers.

Kings XI Punjab: The absence of Shaun Marsh and James Hopes as openers has hit them hard. Karan Goel, who scored 76 runs in seven matches in last year’s IPL, has been asked to open and after a blitz in the first match against Daredevils flopped miserably against KKR.

Mumbai Indians: MI have made good use of their resources, but Mumbai’s Rohan Raje has found it tough in IPL-2. Raje, a medium-pacer, hasn’t quite emulated the performances of all-rounder Abhishek Nayar.

Rajasthan Royals: Shane Warne has been very astute in the utility of each and every member of his team. But the Indian players in the Royals team like Mahesh Rawat, Niraj Patel and Swapnil Asnodkar looked overawed by the alien conditions in South Africa.

Royal Challengers Bangalore: After a fine start in the tournament, RCB have slipped after two consecutive losses. In the match against Deccan Chargers, RCB fielded players like Karan Sharma and Rajesh Bishnoi, who played no part with either bat or the ball.