IPL Fantasy Guru: 13 take-aways from the first week

Before going into this week’s fixtures, here is what you should know:

Suryakumar Yadav – The only reason I left the 24-year-old out of my playing XI for Kolkata Knight Riders’ season opener was his batting position. Despite showing immense potential last season, the KKR management seemed hell bent on playing him at No.7 – too low to return points in fantasy cricket. However, they seemed to have realised their mistake and are using him at the top of the batting order this time around.

It could well be because they want him to get used to that role as Shakib Al Hasan, one who was trusted with the role in 2014, won’t be available for the majority of the season. So, just rope him in; he is up there with the best uncapped fantasy players this season.

Sunil Narine – As expected, a combination of remodelled action and flat decks has made Narine ineffective. Also, his captain, Gautam Gambhir, is using him more up front, which reduces his fantasy potential.

Corey Anderson – Anderson couldn’t do much with the bat in the lost match against Kings XI Punjab and wasn’t given a chance to bowl as well, but in Mumbai Indians’ season opener, he batted at No.5, looked in decent touch and bowled a couple of overs as well. At 950K and with flat decks and shorter boundaries being the norm, this seems quite a deal.

Sandeep Sharma and Anureet Singh – Sandeep has looked as good as he has ever been. He has swung the ball up front and hasn’t given away many runs. I would get him in whenever Kings XI play, as not many teams have a top 3 that can negate quality swing bowling. Anureet Singh, on the other hand, appears less of a threat with the new ball, but he bowls more at the death, which increases his chances of picking up wickets; in addition to it, he comes in at just 600K as compared to Sandeep’s price tag of 750K.

Deepak Hooda – The off-spinning all-rounder has been a revelation so far. Coming late in the batting order, he has cleared the ropes with ease and looks technically equipped as well. He was a little uncomfortable against the short ball, but it is too early to look deep into it. That he can turn his arm over only makes him an even better option.

Dwayne Bravo – As I had predicted in my first article, Bravo was hardly required with the bat for the Chennai Super Kings in their first two matches. While he continues to get his share of wickets, courtesy of bowling at the death, they come at high cost given his budget, overseas slot and runs conceded.

Trent Boult – There wasn’t anything menacing about Boult. He was steady at best and couldn’t swing the ball, and that is largely along expected lines considering the types of decks in IPL.

Dinesh Karthik – Virat Kohli’s decision to open the innings has given Dinesh Karthik the best position to bat at – No.3. At just 900k, he seems to be one of the best deals this season.

Steven Smith – The stand-in Rajasthan Royals captain hasn’t clicked so far but looks in supreme touch and it is only a matter of time before he plays a high impact knock. He bats at No.3 now, which makes him a must-have, but it remains to be seen how the team management uses him once Shane Watson comes back into the set-up. If he is demoted to No.5, a position where he played last year, he would not work so well (from a fantasy perspective).

James Faulkner – The Rajasthan Royals all-rounder costs a massive 100K, and as seen in the match against Delhi Daredevils, he could leak a lot of runs and may not get a real chance to score with the bat. His chances will only be diminished if Sanju Samson, Stuart Binny and Shane Watson find form. On his day, he will turn out to be a great pick – as it was in the match against Kings XI Punjab, but I expect those days will be rare.

Yuvraj Singh – Yuvraj appeared in good touch in the two matches he has played so far, but he couldn’t convert the starts – succumbing to the short ball both times. Franchises will have taken a note of it, so expect him to be targeted with the bouncers. To make things worse, he bats below JP Duminy. This appears to be a hit-and-miss case – may or may not work depending on how lucky you are.

JP Duminy – Delhi’s think-tank was quick to learn from their tactical goof-up in the match against the Chennai Super Kings, promoting JP Duminy to No.3 from No.7. However at 100K, he doesn’t look like a great option. Let’s wait till he strikes some prime form to get him in.

Imran Tahir – I was a little concerned with getting spinners in, as I didn’t see the decks offering much turn. While it turned out to be true, what makes Tahir a standout despite the pitch factor is that he is being bowled at the death by Delhi Daredevils. Even otherwise, he is an exceptional limited overs bowler. To top it off, he costs you only 900k.

Royal Challengers Bangalore vs. Sunrisers Hyderabad

Transfers made – 1; Transfers remaining – 68

Glenn Maxwell out – Imran Tahir in

KC Cariappa out – Deepak Hooda in

Both the subs have been made with the upcoming matches in mind

Captain – David Warner/Virat Kohli

Guru’s team for RCB vs SRH match

I already have Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Shikhar Dhawan and David Warner in for this encounter. M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bangalore, the venue where the match will be taking place, is one of the best batting decks in the world, and I expect these four to come good.

However, contrary to the popular opinion that bowlers hardly get any assistance here, pace bowlers who have the ability to swing the ball at decent speeds have always benefited in the first few overs – which is why I gamble on keeping Chris Gayle out. I expect the likes of Trent Boult and Bhuvneshwar Kumar to get the better of him. If Dale Steyn plays, it only increases the chances of Gayle getting out early. Ishant Sharma, on his day, would be difficult to get away too.

While Dinesh Karthik could come good, I can't slot him into my team at this point as the Royal Challengers don’t play for some time after this encounter, so he will have to wait.

Rajasthan Royals vs. Mumbai Indians

Transfers made – 2; Transfers remaining – 66

AB de Villiers out – Ajinkya Rahane in

Virat Kohli out – Steven Smith in

Karun Nair out - Sanju Samson in

Captain – Steven Smith/Rohit Sharma

Guru’s team for RR vs MI match

The two best Mumbai Indians picks for this match – Rohit Sharma and Corey Anderson – are already in my team. The Royals have one of the weakest bowling units in the IPL, so both these batsmen have the potential to return points.

Coming to the Royals side of it, I would be drafting in Steven Smith. While the threat of him being demoted is always there, if he plays at No.3, it could be game over for the Mumbai Indians. If the Royals drop Karun Nair and bring in an Indian bowler for this match, it is a good sign of Smith batting at No.3 despite Watson's inclusion. Reports suggest that Watson will be fit for this encounter, and dropping Nair is the only way they can afford to have him in. Nair hasn’t helped his case by failing with the bat in both the matches so far.

Watson batted at 4 last season and he may very well continue to bat at that position, giving Smith space at the top of the order. At No.4, Watson was hardly impressive last season and he is not bowling as much as he did in the first 6 years of IPL as well. So, I wouldn’t have him in my team.

I don’t generally bring in Rahane, but the Royals play twice in a span of three matches and there is a real possibility of carrying him over for two more matches as well. So, that’s great value for a substitution.

Deepak Hooda will obviously be my first choice uncapped player pick for this match. Sanju Samson hasn’t done anything of note yet this season, but I need a wicket-keeper and he comes for free. Given how ineffective Mumbai bowlers have been this season, I wouldn’t be surprised if Samson helps himself to an easy half-century.

Kings XI Punjab vs Delhi Daredevils

Transfers made – 0; Transfers remaining – 66

Yuzvendra Chahal out – Anureet Singh in

Captain – Sandeep Sharma/Imran Tahir

Guru’s team for KXIP vs DD match

If Glenn Maxwell can’t deliver against Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians, I don’t see how he will do anything of note against the Delhi Daredevils who have two leg-spinners and both in some brilliant form. So, he stays out. Virender Sehwag is unpredictable. He could be easily sorted out by the new ball, but if he escapes that, he will tear into the spinners.

Miller could be stifled by the spinners in case he comes in early; if he is reserved for the death overs, he wouldn’t get too many balls to affect you anyway. Nothing appears certain from the Daredevils side of it as well, except Imran Tahir. I have already explained why I consider him as an asset this season. I get him in and captain him as well.

Shreyas Iyer may have done well against Rajasthan Royals, but Kings XI Punjab have too good a bowling attack for him to mess around.

Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals

Transfers made – 0; Transfers remaining – 66

Anureet Singh out – J Suchitch in

Captain – David Warner/Steve Smith

Guru’s team for SRH vs. RR match

Unless the deck here springs up a surprise, David Warner, Ajinkya Rahane, Steven Smith and Shikhar Dhawan should all be amongst the runs. Wickets should be split.

With both Samson and Hooda in my team, I have decided to bring in J Suchitch from Mumbai Indians as my uncapped player for this team. He would be required to get rid of the Super Kings opening pair of Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith, who generally struggle against left-arm spinners, and he has proved to be quite handy with the bat as well.