IPL fantasy cricket, SRH vs RR: 5 things you need to be wary of
The doubleheaders certainly surprised us last night. While the much-fancied Delhi Daredevils lost to Kings XI Punjab, Royal Challengers Bangalore, who were viewed as overwhelming favourties, lost to a team that appeared to finish at the bottom before the tournament.
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So here are the five moves that fans need to be wary of before choosing their team for Sunrisers Hyderabad's first game of the season, which will be against Rajasthan Royals.
1. Hales or Williamson
Alex Hales might have arrived late following David Warner's ban but he is ready to go. SRH need one aggressor at the top to replace Warner and there aren't a lot of better options right now in world cricket than Hales.
Also, Kane Williamson has just arrived following a gruelling home season with New Zealand and since then, he has been travelling to fulfill his captaincy obligations.
Tiredness might creep into his game so it is wise to wait and see how he holds up. Rajasthan Royals have a strong pace attack and that's something Hales will relish. So back the England opener and watch him unleash himself.
2. The uncertainties
Manish Pandey is a certainty but then will Saha get to bat at No. 3? If Saha bats at three, then where does Williamson bat? And how about the role of the finisher?
Shakib Al Hasan appears to be a certainty as well but how about the other guy? Will it be the experienced Yusuf Pathan or the youthful exuberance of Deepak Hooda?
Will Mohammad Nabi get to play ahead of Carlos Brathwaite? There are too many questions related to SRH's strategy and it is better to wait and watch what sort of personnel they prefer.
In fantasy, the most important thing is to always pick players who are almost certain to start. Being watchful might cost you a few crucial points but at least.
3. The certainties
To go into a SRH game without Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Rashid Khan is a crime. At least at the start of the tournament, just back these two blindly and no matter how much they cost, pick them.
These two are absolute rockstars and have the ability to pick up loads of wickets, so gambling by not picking one of them can leave you far behind since most of the players will look to have them in their side.
Bhuvi ends up among the top wicket-takers year after year and the Uttar Pradesh seamer also keeps adding to his repertoire making it difficult to get going against him.
4. Klaasen over D'Arcy
How many of you cannot wait to watch D'Arcy Short in action following his exploits in the Big Bash League?
I'm a part of that bandwagon too looks like we have to wait for his IPL debut. The man just joined his teammates few hours before the game and as a result, jet lag might have a telling impact.
Also, RR would prefer having Heinrich Klaasen play against SRH given the wealth of their spin talent.
With Khan, Al Hasan and possibly one more into the mix, Klaasen will be given an opportunity to take on them, like he did against India recently.
5. How effective is Big Ben?
This isn't going to be a popular opinion but Ben Stokes might not fire tomorrow as much as you would like.
His fitness will be put to the test first thing tomorrow with the all-rounder recently having issues with his bowling.
Will he bowl his quota? Will be reliable if he does? And how good can he be with the bat against the likes of Khan, Kumar and the others?
Investing on Stokes still appears to be a 50-50 decision and I know which side of the fence I would like to sit in.
He is perhaps the costliest player in the fantasy, so do not expect great returns if you still manage to pick him.