T20 World Cup Fantasy 2021: Best Fantasy XI for Matches 1 & 2, OMN vs PNG - BAN vs SCO | T20 WC Fantasy Tips
The wait is finally over! The much-awaited ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 is set to begin on Sunday, 17th October, with Oman taking on Papua New Guinea at the Al Amerat Stadium in Muscat, Oman. But that isn't all for the day as Bangladesh will face Scotland later on at the same venue.
Walking along the same lines, the ICC T20 World Cup Fantasy League is also set to start with the Round 1 Qualifiers. Fantasy players are allowed to make changes after each game, similar to the IPL fantasy league format.
Fantasy players, however, will have to note that a specific number of transfers are allowed for each stage of the competition. While a maximum of 30 changes have been allotted for the Round 1 Qualifiers, 75 changes will be allowed during the Super 12 stage. Another important point to note, unused transfers from one stage will not be transferable to the next stage. However, there aren't restrictions while choosing your captain and vice-captain selections during the tournament.
Now, setting up a team ahead of a marquee tournament such as the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021 is no easy task. With a decent grasp of the rules, let's take a look at the Best Fantasy XI ahead of Match 1 of the ICC Men's T20 World Cup 2021.
Deadline: 3:30 PM IST on Sunday, 17th October.
Note: Since this is the first match of the season, the team I suggest in this article might not be the team that I ultimately select. If I make any changes, I'll include them in the next piece.
Best T20 World Cup 2021 Fantasy Team for Matches 1 & 2, OMN vs PNG | BAN vs SCO
Wicketkeeper: Liton Das (8.5 credits)
Batters: George Munsey (8.5 credits), Mohammad Naim (8.5 credits), Jatinder Singh (8 credits)
Allrounders: Wanindu Hasaranga (9.5 credits), Shakib Al Hasan (9.5 credits), Colin Ackermann (8.5 credits), Aqib Ilyas (7.5 credits),
Bowlers: Mustafizur Rahman (9.5 credits), Bilal Khan (8.5 credits) and Paul van Meekeren (8 credits)
I've gone with a first matchday squad comprising mostly of Bangladesh players, who are expected to have a good Round 1 Qualifier campaign. Although these teams are expected to play every alternate day, I will be making a few changes every match and make sure we have enough players to fetch fantasy points every game or on a daily basis. I am banking on spin-bowling all-rounders to fare well, with the likes of Shakib Al Hasan and Wanindu Hasaranga likely to be among the most popular selections in the T20 World Cup fantasy league.
To break into the monotony of Bangladesh players in the second game, I've opted for George Munsey, who is one of the more destructive batters going around in Scottish cricket. Mustafizur Rahman and Shakib Al Hasan will handle the bowling aspect of my fantasy team and I expect them to be amongst the wickets against a Scotland side who have struggled in recent weeks.
In addition to a strong Match Day 1 squad, I also have six credits left unused, something that will allow me to be a bit more flexible while making transfers ahead of the next round of fixtures.
Best T20 World Cup 2021 for Match 1 and 2 - Summary
Players Playing in Match 1: Jatinder Singh, Aqib Ilyas, Charles Amini and Bilal Khan
Players Playing in Match 2: Shakib Al Hasan, Mohammad Naim, Liton Das, Mustafizur Rahman and George Munsey
Captaincy Picks:
Captain and Vice-Captain Picks: Jatinder Singh, Bilal Khan (Both Match 1) and Liton Das, Mustafizur Rahman (Both Match 2)
With every matchday in the Round 1 Qualifiers being a double-header, it is critical that we are proactive with our captain and vice-captain selections. Going into the first game, I am likely to prefer Jatinder Singh as a captaincy option. Although he hasn't been in the best of form, Jatinder's ability to cash in on the powerplay restrictions and Papua New Guinea's lack of genuine pace upfront make him a good option. Bilal Khan, meanwhile, has been preferred over Aqib Ilyas solely due to the fact that pacers have played a more significant role than the spinners at the Al Amerat Stadium in the last few games.
For the second game of the day, Liton Das and Mustafizur Rahman are the preferred choices for obvious reasons. Liton is one of Bangladesh's best batters and can score quick and big runs at the top of the order. Mustafizur Rahman's inclusion ought to be a no-brainer for this game as his cutters are likely to be too good for the Scots, it is worth a go to have him as one of your differential picks.
Other Players
Wanindu Hasaranga (AR/Sri Lanka) | Next Fixture: vs Namibia, Match 4
Paul van Meekeren (BOWL/Netherlands) | Next Fixture: vs Ireland, Match 3