When self doubt creeps in, talent takes a back seat. No matter who you are, self doubt can cause you to question you entire skill set and make you come down from that superhuman state to being just a mere mortal. It is a downhill journey that shatters your core, but then champions aren’t made from the things that transpire on field, rather from how you deal with on field stress when you are off it.
Virat and ABD have been pegged to the corner of uncertainty, a place which breeds self doubt. It’s tough ballooning off that wrecked space, but if anyone can, it is these two stalwarts, especially when now they have nothing much to lose, as RCB have been virtually knocked out of the tournament.
Andrew Tye set the match up for the Lions, dismissing Gayle and Head of consecutive balls to further play with the minds of the already tentative RCB batting line up. Jadhav tried to counter attack but ultimately perished trying to do a bit too much.
The chase was supposed to be a little tricky, as the pitch was providing some assistance to the bowlers and not aiding stroke play one bit. Badree’s two wickets in the powerplay did breathe some life into the RCB camp, but Finch demolished all hopes for RCB with a brilliant 22 ball 50. He treated the bowlers with utter disdain, making a mockery of the RCB total.
Gujarat Lions have finally shrugged themselves away from that bottom spot and will be hoping to build on this momentum. RCB on the other hand will need to go to the drawing board again and sort out their inner demons to have even the slightest of chances of making it to the playoffs.
Kolkata Knight Riders vs Delhi Daredevils
Kolkata Knight Riders have been breeding heroes in their ranks, and with a ring master as talented and shrewd as Gambhir, they have been unearthing new animals every game. Nathan Coulter Nile should be returning to the starting line up for this game, and it should be either Woakes or Granhomme to make way for him. The top order has been working wonders for KKR with Narine getting them off to flyers, Gambhir playing the anchor role and Uthappa taking the spinners for a ride in the middle overs.
The Delhi Daredevils have roped in Marlon Samuels to replace QDK, and they should be buoyed by his addition at the top, as their inexperienced Indian top order isn’t really winning them a lot of games.
Both these sides have a very strong bowling unit and thus this match would be won in a straight toss up between the batting line ups of both sides.
Let’s get to business now!
IPL Fantasy League Fantasy Tips on the next page
IPL Fantasy League
Transfer out: Ben Stokes, Shubham Agarwal
Transfer in: Chris Morris, Any player worth 700,000
Now, I already have Sunil Narine, Manish Pandey and Kuldeep Yadav in my side for this game.
The first player that I’ll get in for this game is Chris Morris. He has probably been the worst used player by the DD side and still he has been their most well performing asset, giving rich dividends whenever he is brought into the foray. His death bowling has been immaculate and his lower order striking skills have been on display every time he is provided with the ‘opportunity’ to bat.
The Uthappa-Gambhir conundrum has existed since the two of them got together for KKR a few years back. When it comes to picking one out of the two, I’ll always opt for Uthappa because he gives me that extra scoring option with his wicketkeeping skills. Wicketkeepers are generally involved in a minimum of two dismissals and thus Gambhir will have to roughly score 15 more runs than Uthappa to match his score for the match. So, if you want to get in one from these two, Uthappa should be the one to go with.
Sanju Samson and Rishab Pant have impressed in bursts this year, but both of them don’t really ooze of consistency at the moment, and with DD not playing a game in the next 3 matches, there is no way I’ll be able to carry them, hence I opt out of going for them. KKRs bowling could prove to be a little too much for them as well.
If you have a lot of transfers, and you want to cover all your bases, you could go for Uthappa, but with just 27 transfers in the kitty, I’ll be opting out of him and will be making just the solitary transfer for this game.
For the uncapped player, I’ll be getting in any dummy player worth 700,000, as that is the amount I have left in my kitty and there is no player from both sides worth that much that would be making an appearance. If there is one, you know what to do.
Captain: Sunil Narine/Chris Morris(whoever bowls first)
Fandromeda Tips on the next page:
Fandromeda
Transfer out: Suresh Raina, Andrew Tye
Transfer in: Robin Uthappa, Chris Morris
Now, I already have Manish Pandey, Kuldeep Yadav and Sunil Narine in my team for this game.
The first player that I get in is Chris Morris, reasons for which are already mentioned in the IPL Fantasy League section. Out of all the players on offer for this game, he could be the most impactful, as KKRs bowling could run through the DD top order, thereby giving Morris an opportunity to score with the bat as well. Get him in for sure.
The next player that I get in is Robin Uthappa. Uthappa looked in exquisite touch in the last game and I would always prefer Uthappa to Gambhir(reasons again mentioned in the IPL Fantasy League section).
With all other bases covered, I wouldn’t be making any other transfers for this game.
Batting Star: Robin Uthappa
Bolwing Star: Chris Morris/Kuldeep Yadav(whoever bowls first)
