Is the IPL 2026 Top 4 already decided? Plus a Black Caps Test squad draft!

In this episode of the show, Baldy, Raj and Stu discuss the week that was in IPL 2026, Geoff Allott's appointment as New Zealand Cricket CEO and draft their Black Caps Test squad for the upcoming tour to Ireland and England.

We start the show by discussing another disappointing week for the Mumbai Indians, before we turn our attention to the three sides just on the outside of the playoff picture - the Gujarat Titans, the Chennai Super Kings and the Delhi Capitals. Are Shubman Gill's GT building momentum? Does Sanju Samson have another 4-5 hundreds in his locker? And how much did DC's Kyle Jamieson enjoy his yorker to Vaibhav Sooryavanshi?!

As the conversation continues, there's praise for Virat Kohli, Heinrich Klaasen, Josh Hazelwood, Arshdeep Singh and a host of other players, before we move on to discuss New Zealand Cricket's appointment of Geoff Allott as CEO. What are the key decisions waiting for him on day 1? And what does this mean for the NZ20?

To round out the show, Baldy challenges Raj and Stu to draft a 15-player Black Caps Test squad to tour the UK and Ireland, which leads to a few disagreements and a much longer show than Baldy was expecting. Does Mitchell Santner's injury complicate the selection process? Jacob Duffy or Kyle Jamieson? Or both? Is there room for a bolter? A back-up wicketkeeper? A spinner? Kane Williamson's legacy, Glenn Phillips's role and the back-up seamer spots in hot demand.

We'll be back in your feed again soon with more cricket news, including the charge to the IPL finals and the Black Caps' tour to England. Until then please take the time to give us a like, follow, share or !) review at your favourite podcast provider, or tell a friend to download. It really helps others find the show and is the best thing you can do to support us. You can also find all our written content, including our Hall of Fame series, at our website.

You can also dip back into our guest episodes - including conversations with Mike Hesson, Shane Bond and Mike Hussey, current players such as Matt Henry, Sophie Devine and Ish Sodhi, coaches Gary Stead, Jeetan Patel and Luke Wright, as well as Barry Richards, Frankie Mackay, Bharat Sundaresan and many more fascinating people from all across the cricketing world. And if you'd like to reach out to us with feedback, questions or guest suggestions, get in touch at thetoporderpodcast@gmail.com.

Thanks for listening.

0:00 Intro
1:00 IPL 2026: Is the Top 4 already decided?
3:40 Mumbai Indians continue to disappoint
7:25 Are the Gujarat Titans building momentum?
9:35 Virat Kohli is majestic
12:35 Are the Chennai Super Kings still in the mix?
15:30 Delhi Capitals up and down form
20:40 RCB, SRH & Punjab Kings looking good
28:45 Geoff Allott named NZ Cricket CEO
37:55 Black Caps Test squad draft