IPL 2018 Fantasy Guru: What your team should look like for KXIP vs RCB

Subs used – 2; Subs remaining – 10

Ambati Rayudu out – KL Rahul in

Andre Russell out – Chris Gayle in

(Uncapped trick employed) Suryakumar Yadav out – Krishnappa Gowtham in

Uncapped preference order: Manan Vohra, Ankit Rajpoot, Mayank Agarwal

Captain – KL Rahul

Captaincy preference order: KL Rahul, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Chris Gayle

Differential: Quinton de Kock (if he plays)

Multiplier used – Yes

Guru’s team ahead of KXIP vs RCB: KL Rahul, V Kohli, AB de Villiers, C Gayle, J Buttler, N Rana, K Pandya, J Archer, S Kaul, *J Bumrah, K Gowtham

*I used an extra sub yesterday to bring in Jasprit Bumrah in place of Bhuvneshwar Kumar (yes, it didn’t work).

If Royal Challengers Bangalore play the same XI again, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers are the only two players worth picking, and they are already in my team. The deck at Indore is getting back to its usual state, and if the pair gets enough time at the crease, they would rain down on the Kings XI Punjab bowling attack.

Mujeeb Zadran is one bowler who is capable of limiting the damage, but in a ground where mishits sail past the ropes, it isn’t something I would bank on. Whether or not Andrew Tye is amongst the wickets again depends on who is at the crease for RCB at the death: if Kohli and De Villiers are around, they will not just make sure he doesn’t get any wickets but also go for plenty of runs.

From Kings XI Punjab, I can’t look past KL Rahul and Chris Gayle. There are no threats to Rahul in the match, while all Gayle needs to do is find a way to survive Umesh Yadav. However, with Umesh bowling all his overs up front, it is not going to be an easy task.

While I might not have too many players today, this match ticks all my other requirements for employing a multiplier: the kind of players I have, the venue they are playing at, the bowling attacks they are going to be up against, and not missing out on any of the impact players involved.