IPL 2014: Fantasy Guru - Keep calm and trust Schedule Mantra
Guru’s team after the Chennai Super Kings vs. Delhi Daredevils match
Recap:
In contrast to what I had mentioned in my last article, I brought in Ishwar Pandey ahead of Mayank Agarwal as the uncapped player into my team for the Chennai Super Kings match: a move that reaped sweet rewards. Once I came to know that the Super Kings were playing both Ben Hilfenhaus and Pandey, it had to be done; Agarwal, as an opener, fails against persistent quality bowling, be it swing, bounce or spin. You may have to refer to my previous articles, to know about the strengths and weaknesses of the players, in such cases to alter accordingly. Since I don’t want my articles to be repetitive, I may avoid discussing the same scenarios again and again; that doesn’t mean they are thrown out of the equation.
However, from now on, to make it convenient, I will add my last minute changes to the article, at the bottom.
The gamble to keep JP Duminy out of the team paid off big time, but I can only take credit for it if I put to use the saved transfer properly. I hope the way Shane Watson played justified my theory of ‘he has always been in decent form but was outplayed by pitches and bowlers who don’t suit his style of batting in the 2014 World Cup T20 and the 1st match of IPL 7′.
Looking ahead, there are a number of fixtures where you can employ the ‘schedule mantra’, so we need to be very sure of the transfers we do to be in a position to make use of the 3-match rounds. (click here to learn more about schedule mantra)
Dwayne Smith may have got the better of Brendon McCullum in the first of the two fixtures, but you need to wait to see what happens in the next Super Kings match to value how good a pick he was.
Kings 11 Punjab vs. Sunrisers Hyderabad:
Guru’s team for the Sunrisers Hyderabad vs. Kings 11 Punjab
Transfers made – 1; Transfers remaining – 61
David Warner in – Shane Watson out
Lokesh Rahul in – Dhawal Kulkarni out
Captain – David Warner
Glenn Maxwell will have to deal with Dale Steyn and Amit Mishra, while David Warner will be up against the worst bowling attack in the IPL. I go for Warner, a move which is well worth it. Moreover, do you really think that he will score another 45-ball 90?
David Warner to feast on Kings 11 bowlers:
There isn’t much to pick between Aaron Finch and David Warner, but, if there is a threat to anyone making it big, it should be to Finch; he will be facing Mitchell Johnson when the ball moves around and the left-arm spinners who could dart something in or beat him in flight.
Shikhar Dhawan isn’t worth the risk, as it isn’t yet clear if he is back to his best. While we can expect the Sunrisers to be positive in the way they handle Darren Sammy, if both Finch and Warner fire, there wouldn’t be much time for him to make an impact. Since he is in the team already, there is no option but to stick with him in hope that he gets to face a good number of deliveries.
The pitch at Sharjah has been extremely good for batting, and hence the Sunrisers bowlers, with the exception of Amit Mishra who is already in the team, stay out.
Kings 11 Punjab:
Don’t ever pick George Bailey:
Finally, I was able to get a clear idea of what plans George Bailey has for the season. As I predicted, Wriddhiman Saha was used as a floater, and don’t be surprised if it is done again. Unlike the promotion of Akshar Patel, it makes sense, too. So David Miller comes in at No. 5, as Bailey has demoted himself to No. 6. The fact that he bats himself at No. 6 has ruled him out of contention for any of the Kings 11 matches in this season.
Schedule Mantra keeps Miller out:
Although Miller can be expected to make an impression, the fact that KXIP play their second match only after a span of 5 IPL matches makes him ineligible for Guru’s fantasy team selection. He should have ideally been brought in ahead of the Rajasthan Royals match, but I wasn’t sure about where he will bat. Bringing him now only indicates panic.
This will be the second transfer saved as per Guru’s mantra. There have been some misconceptions in the way certain readers have understood on how to go about it; therefore, I will try to shed more light into the theory.