Kolkata Knight Riders are the Best Team in the Indian Premier League, Says Dean Jones

The eighth edition of the Indian Premier League is all set to kick off. As usual the entire country is gripped with T20 fever and NDTV experts Sunil Gavaskar and Dean Jones can't wait for it to start.(IPL 2015: Full Coverage)

Talking exclusively to NDTV on Tuesday, former Aussie batsman Jones, still high on the euphoria of Australia's World Cup win, said that he was looking forward to the most watched T20 league of the world.(Know Your Team: Kolkata Knight Riders)

Sunil Gavaskar too, didn't hide his excitement.

Talking about the favourites to win this year's title, Jones was quick to pick the defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders.

"The KKR are very strong", said the former Australian middle-order batsman, "Punjab, Chennai are all top teams but KKR by far, are miles ahead."

Gavaskar though, sat on the fence.

"It will be very very difficult", said the Indian legend, "Every team has done its homework from the last year. They have made additions to their team looking at their shortcomings in the previous year. So, till we get an idea what the combinations look like, it will be very tough to predict who is going to be the winner."

The IPL has always been surrounded by controversies. This season, two teams -- Rajasthan Royals and Chennai Super Kings -- are undergoing investigations for the 2013 betting and match-fixing controversy.

Will the players be affected by it?

Gavaskar doesn't think so.

"The pending investigations won't distract the teams", he said, "There is so much happening in a 20 overs game. So, it's impossible to let your mind get distracted by anything and in any case they are not involved in the investigation. So, I don't think it will be an issue at all."

The former Indian captain also added that people always try to find faults in a successful venture.

"People will always look at the negative aspect of anything. They will try and find fault in a successful venture. As far as the IPL is concerned I don't think it has gone down at all"

This IPL provides a platform for the youngsters to show their talent on a massive platform. Both Jones and Gavaskar pointed out that there were a host of youngsters who were looking to impress the audiences and the selectors of their respective countries.

Not only the youngsters, even a few discards have a chance to turn their careers around.(Narine is Gambhir's Main Weapon)

"Yuvraj Singh needs to stand up for Delhi Daredevils", said Jones, "He needs to bat at number three for them and take charge."

Gavaskar too maintained similar views.

Talking about Yuvraj Singh, Virender Sehwag and Zaheer Khan he said, "They are all classy players. Next year is the ICC T20 World Cup. So, good performances in the IPL will certainly bolster their chances of making a comeback to the team."

The battleground is set, the warriors are ready. The hooter for India's biggest sporting extravaganza has just been sounded!