IPL 2018 Fantasy Guru: What your team should look like for CSK vs SRH
Subs used - 0(1); Subs remaining - 14(13)
(Uncapped trick employed) Shreyas Iyer out – Krunal Pandya in
Andre Russell out - Shikhar Dhawan in (only if SRH bat second)
Captain – Ambati Rayudu
Captaincy preference order: Shikhar Dhawan, Ambati Rayudu, Suresh Raina, Kane Williamson, Rashid Khan
Differentials - Alex Hales and Bhuvneshwar Kumar
Multipliers remaining – 2
Guru’s team ahead of CSK vs SRH match: A Rayudu, V Kohli, AB de Villiers, R Pant, P Shaw, N Rana, J Archer, K Pandya, A Russell/S Dhawan, S Kaul, B Kumar
With the exception of Ambati Rayudu, I see Suresh Raina as the only other top order Chennai Super Kings batsman who is capable of handling the bowling attack of Sunrisers Hyderabad today. There is no issue of pace and bounce for him in this fixture with Billy Stanlake unavailable, and Rashid Khan is not as effective to left-handers as he is to right-handers.
MS Dhoni could come into play as well, with Rashid being his only threat, but he bats too low to be a reliable fantasy bet. I have no plans of bringing in any CSK player anyway, as the team enters into a five-game break period and there is already a captaincy option in Rayudu.
While I have Bhuvneshwar Kumar, he is not a necessity if you are just looking at this game; Dhoni, who has an exceptional H2H record against the Indian pacer, will have a considerable impact on the chances of him taking wickets at the death. Also, Shikhar Dhawan, Kane Williamson, Shakib Al Hasan and Rashid Khan are all better options than the 28-year-old.
If Sunrisers bat second, I will have to bring in Dhawan as I would be in need of a second innings captaincy option; if they bat first, however, I could do with Rayudu and Bhuvneshwar being my two captains.
The choice between Dhawan and Williamson is made on the basis that the former bats higher, seems to have found some form, and with Pune being a bigger ground, the Kiwi will need some powerplay cushion, which he won’t get if the first wicket partnership lasts 4-6 overs, to make a real big score.
I use this uncapped window to get Krunal Pandya into my team, as barring Siddarth Kaul, there is no value in any other uncapped player featuring in this match.