Squads –
RCB –
Virat Kohli (c), AB de Villiers, Devdutt Padikkal, Gurkeerat Singh, Moeen Ali, Mohammed Siraj, Navdeep Saini, Parthiv Patel, Pawan Negi, Shivam Dube, Umesh Yadav, Washington Sundar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Aaron Finch, Chris Morris, Dale Steyn, Isuru Udana, Joshua Philippe, Pavan Deshpande, Shahbaz Ahamad, Adam Zampa
KXIP –
KL Rahul (c & wk), Arshdeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Darshan Nalkande, Krishnappa Gowtham, Hardus Viljoen, Harpreet Brar, Jagadeesha Suchith, Karun Nair, Mandeep Singh, Mayank Agarwal, Mohammed Shami, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Murugan Ashwin, Nicholas Pooran, Sarfaraz Khan, Chris Jordan, Deepak Hooda, Glenn Maxwell, Ishan Porel, James Neesham, Prabhsimran Singh, Ravi Bishnoi, Sheldon Cottrell, Tajinder Dhillon
Team News –
RCB –
– The Royal Challenges Bangalore finally had a winning start to their IPL season . Devdutt and AB with the bat and the spin wizard Yuzvendra Chahal and Pace attack of Dube and Saini were the match defining moments for RCB last game against SRH.
– Chris Morris is having a side strain and will be likely out for more 1 2 games as confirmed by the coach himself.
– Moeen Ali and Zampa has been seen practising a lot so any 1 of them can get a game for Phillipe who becomes totally useless at that no 5 position.
– This game will be played on a fresh Wicket so can expect a lot of runs in 1st Innings and dew in 2nd innings.
– Their Likely 4 foreign players will be Aaron Finch, ABD, Josh Philippe/Adam Zampa/Moeen Ali and Dale Steyn
– Aaron Finch and Young Devdutt Padikal will open the innings. Finch is a world class batter while Padikal has made a huge name in domestic circuit by leading the scorer list in Syed Mushtaq trophy , Karnataka Premium league etc. Both of them made a flying start last game with a 70+ partnership for the first Wicket with Devdutt scoring a 50.
– Virat Kohli will bat 1 down. Virat is truly the king of IPL performing in every season with same consistency. He got out early last game but will be eager for a big game against Punjab against whom he Averages just above 30 with 632 runs on his name.
– AB De Villiers will follow his best friend at 2 down. He has retired from International cricket but can still hit it big. He scored a match defining 50 last game.
– Moeen Ali/Josh Philippe and Shivan Dube will bat in middle and should also play the role of late hitter.
– Yuzvendra Chahal the the star performer of last game and Washington Sunder will lead the spin section while Moeen ali if plays will join them.
– Umesh Yadav, Dale Steyn and Navdeep Saini will be the likely pace attack with Saini and Dale bowling in death. Umesh will mostly bowl in powerplay and in middle overs. Shivan dube will assist them if needed.
KXIP –
– Punjab lost one of the trilling encounters in IPL history 2 days ago against the Capitals by a minimal margin of 1 run Which then went into a super over which was won by the capitals. Mayank Agrawal with and bat and Mohammad Shami with the ball were the star players of last game.
– Team can make a bold move by picking gayle for the clash against RCB as he Average over 70 against them and knows the team and it’s bowlers quite well.
– Glenn Maxwell, Chris Jordan/Mujeeb Rahman, Nicolas Pooran and Sheldon Cottrell will be their likely 4 foreign players to start.
– Rahul will open with Mayank Agrawal. Both have played from Karnataka in domestic circuit and knows each other quite well. Mayank scored a blistering 89 of 60 balls but unfortunately was short by 1 runs for the victory.
– Karun Nair and Glenn Maxwell will bat 1 down and 2 down respectively. Their middle order which was looking quite weak has been strengthened by arrival of Maxwell.
– Nicolas Pooran will bat at 3 down. He is a exciting talent and has the ability to clear the fence with ease. He was promoted last game but waa out cheaply.
– Sarfaraz/Mandip will play the role of finisher along with Krishnappa Gowtham.
– Gowtham, Ravi Bishnoi and Glenn Maxwell will lead the spin attack. Mujeeb can get a game .
– Mohammad Shami, Sheldon Cottrell and Chris Jordan will lead the pace attack. Shami and Cottrell/Jordan will bowl in death.
Probable XI –
RCB –
Aaron Finch, Devdutt Padikkal, Virat Kohli(c), AB de Villiers(wk), Moeen Ali/Josh Philippe, Shivan Dube, Washington Sunder, Yuzi Chahal, Umesh Yadav, Navdeep Saini, Dale Steyn
KXIP –
KL Rahul(C & wk ), Mayank Agrawal, Karun Nair, Nicolas Pooran, Glenn Maxwell, Mandip Singh/Sarfaraz Khan, Krishnappa Gowtham, Chris Jordan/Mujeeb Rahman, Sheldon Cottrell, Mohammad Shami, Ravi Bishnoi.
Pitch Report –
Dubai International Stadium, Dubai
Dubai Pitch has favored the spinners but this pitch looks with good amount of grass giving help to seamers initially.
Average Score : 143
Lowest Score : 71/10
Highest Score : 211/3
Head to Head –
Total games : 24
KXIP Won : 12
RCB Won : 12
Team Blueprint –
WK-
L Rahul( Opener + wk, currently best T20 Batsman in world cricket, 128 Runs again RCB in 4 games at Average of 42)
N Pooran( Middle order, very hard hitting batsman, failed last game but a excellent pick even in small leagues)
Parthiv Patel( Opener, known for his fiery starts, SR of 170 in powerplay)
Josh Philippe( 3 down, very attacking Aussie Batsman, 487 runs in BBL 2019 with SR of 130, not a good option as he’s Batting in middle)
BAT –
Virat Kohli ( 1 down, best IPL and t20 player in world cricky, leading IPL scorer, 632 runs against KXIP, Must have)
AB De Villiers ( 2 down, best T20 striker even if retired, 51(30) in last game, 652 runs in I against KXIP, Must have )
Chris Gayle( Opener, no intro needed, played his last t20 in BPL 2019, didn’t played last game, can a punt pick if plays)
Aaron Finch ( Opener, very aggressive Batsman, 125 in 3 t20s against Aus recently, Must have especially in 1st innings, can take risk of dropping if he’s chasing)
Mayank Agrawal(Open, SR of 142 last IPL , excellent player of spin , 89(60) last game , averages poor against RCB just 16.75)
Mandeep Singh( Middle order, very good Syed Mushtaq trophy with 3 50+ scores striking at 155)
Sarfaraz ( middle order, can be used as a floater for hitting, very good domestic form)
Gurkeerat Singh( Middle order bat + part time off spin, 1200+ T20 runs , experienced)
D Padikal( Opener, loads of domestic records on his name, 68 in practice game, 56(42b) last game, Must have)
ALL –
Chris Morris( Right Arm fast + late hitting, death overs expert, 22 Wicket in BBL 2019, will not play)
Glenn Maxwell ( 2 down+ 2-3 overs of off spin, century against England recently, averages poor just 18 in 6 games against RCB )
Moeen Ali ( Middle order+ off spin, very attacking Batsman, can be promoted, 6w + 220R for last season, Must have if plays )
Shivan Dube( Lower order + part time pace, can hit the ball really big, 2 Wickets last game, good option now as he will also bowl)
Washington Sunder ( Off spin, very economical, bowls most overs in powerplay)
K Gowtham ( Off spin + late hitting, SR of 166 in t20s, decent bowler , poor last IPL with just 1 Wicket)
S Ahmed( Bowling All, slow left arm, excellent domestic season, 36R + 3W in practice game, can be a excellent pick even in SL )
BOWL –
Yuzi Chahal( Leggie, highest wicket taker for RCB, 19 Wickets against KXIP , 3 Wickets last game, Must have )
Mujeeb Rahman ( Mystery off spinner, 16 Wickets in CPL 2020, must have on this conditions, didn’t played last game)
Umesh Yadav( Right Arm fast, bowls his 2-3 overs in powerplay, 20 Wickets in 2018 for RCB, very expensive last game + wicketless)
Dale Steyn( Right arm fast, very experienced, 256 T20 Wickets, 1w last game, was very expensive)
S Cottrell ( Left arm fast, known for his pace and bounce, 2 Wickets last game against Delhi )
M Shami ( Right Arm fast, hit the deck bowler, Wicket taker, 19 Wickets last IPL, 3 Wickets last game,Must have)
Chris Jordan ( Right Arm Medium Fast, best death bowler currently in world cricket, very experiensive last game still must have )
Ishan Porel ( Medium pacer, 13 t20 Wickets in 13 games, u19 player, got good pace)
Navdeep Saini ( Right Arm fast, emerging talent, bowls close to 150ks , 2w last game, Must pick from RCB)
Isuru Udana( Left arm Medium + late hitting, dark horse for RCB, experienced, 144 t20 Wickets)
C/VC –
KXIP –
Lokesh Rahul
Mayank Agrawal
Glenn Maxwell
RCB –
AB De Villiers
Virat Kohli
Aaron Finch
Devdutt Padikkal