IPL Fantasy 2019 Tips: Best Fantasy XI for Round 3

Round 2 of the Indian Premier League was an exciting one and we had many great contests which were thorough entertainers and we also saw some great batting, bowling and fielding displays.

Round 2 was certainly much better than Round 1 and with two teams playing thrice in Round 3, the nearer it gets to the deadline, the tougher calls you have to take and here are some suggestions to help you out. The plans for Round 2 worked well enough though a few players were expected to perform better than they actually did.

Round 3 is set to begin on April 5th with a cracker of a contest between RCB and KKR.

Note: You can make only 5 trades for free ahead of Round 3 and for every trade you make after that, there will be a deduction of 10 points.

Also, both the Kolkata Knight Riders and the Kings XI Punjab will play three games each hence try to pile up on players from that team.

Meanwhile, the Delhi Capitals will play just one game.

Transfer Deadline: 8:00 pm on April 5th.

Suggested Team for Round 2: KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant, Virat Kohli, Nitish Rana, Colin Ingram, Rohit Sharma, Ben Stokes, Rashid Khan, Varun Chakravarthy, and Imran Tahir

Varun Chakravarthy was forced out with a niggle hence a last-minute change was forced in the form of Sarfaraz Khan from the Kings XI Punjab.

Round 3 will be a key round in determining how this season's fantasy is going to go and if the league leaders manage to get the right team in this round, they can be cruising for the later stages. The aim should be to go for the players from KXIP and KKR and avoid the Delhi Capitals players as much as possible.

Also, you might not want to make an extra trade and lose points and stick with the five free trades provided.

Let's take a look at the players who should be retained for Round 2.

Sarfaraz Khan, the last-minute replacement player played a good knock against the Delhi Capitals. Though it wasn't too much from a fantasy perspective, it indicates a lot of potential in this player and with 3 matches in this round against few of the best teams in the league, he's bound to get enough playing chance to prove himself.

Virat Kohli will be another player who I have chosen to retain and this might be a decision which will seem absurd considering his current form and the other options available. Kohli, however, is a determined player and doesn't stay suppressed for a long time. Regardless of how his team performs, he has the ability to go big and should be backed. He has KKR and DC to face in Round 3 and can get back to form.

KL Rahul is a must-have player for Round 3. Rahul fared well in Round 2 and scored a 57-ball 71 against MI before getting a good start against DC, but getting out for 15. He will have 3 games to play and if he gets into the rhythm, he can really pile on the runs and will be a potential captaincy candidate.

Nitish Rana will be another player who is a must-have for Round 3. The KKR batsmen will play an instrumental role in the side's batting and with 3 fixtures coming the side's way, Rana can get a lot of points to his name.

Rohit Sharma will be another player who has been retained because he seems to be the only constant in this Mumbai Indians batting order. He hasn't exactly set the league on fire but has scored some runs. This round is when he can come into is own and post a big score as he has done in every season.

Imran Tahir was brilliant with the ball for CSK and certainly deserves a place in the squad. He's the best economical option available from CSK and though it takes up an overseas slot, he is a great option at a price of 7.5 credits.

Ben Stokes, the RR all-rounder will be the final player who should be retained. Stokes did do well and scored some runs with the bat while picking up 1 wicket with the ball. He will play only 1 game in Round 3 but will play 3 games in Round 4 to compensate for that. He's a dependable option hence have chosen to retain him.

Changes:

1. Rishabh Pant (out) - Ravichandran Ashwin (in)

2. Rahul Tewatia (out) - Piyush Chawla (in)

3. Rashid Khan (out) - Andre Russell (in)

4. Colin Ingram (out) - Jonny Bairstow (in)

These will be the trades which should be made to the side ahead of Round 3. There are only 4 trades meaning that there will be one spare trade which can be used to make an emergency transfer in case something comes up closer to the deadline.

Ravichandran Ashwin will be the first transfer in and though he's not expected to remain in the team for long, he can make an impact in this round especially with 3 games to play. Ashwin is the only bowler in the KXIP side who doesn't have the risk of rotation and will play every match. He has looked good bowling with the new ball and can give some valuable points.

Piyush Chawla is the second player who I'll be bringing in and the leggie will be a certain starter for KKR in every match. He has looked like taking wickets whenever he's bowling and has been used as a new ball bowler apart from a couple of overs during the middle overs. At a price of 8 credits, he's a safe pick and can give you points playing 3 games in this round.

Andre Russell is a must-have player from KKR and has been the side's best player this season. He has been an extremely reliable fantasy asset and he is expected to deliver in almost every game with both bat and ball. He can be a great captaincy candidate considering his all-around potential and the 3-game round.

Jonny Bairstow, the explosive SRH opener will be my last pick for Round 3. It'll be crazy to not have an SRH opener in the team and with Warner breaking the budget, Bairstow happens to be a great option. SRH's assets this season have been their batsmen more than their bowler and though Rashid Khan has been good for the team, he hasn't offered too much from a fantasy perspective.

The final team for Round 3 is:

KL Rahul - 10.5 Credits
Jonny Bairstow (Overseas) - 8.5 Credits
Virat Kohli - 11.5 Credits
Rohit Sharma - 10.5 Credits
Sarfaraz Khan (Uncapped) - 6.5 Credits
Nitish Rana - 8.5 Credits
Andre Russell (Overseas) - 10 Credits
Ben Stokes (Overseas) - 10 Credits
Imran Tahir (Overseas) - 7.5 Credits
Ravichandran Ashwin - 8.5 Credits
Piyush Chawla - 8 Credits

The captaincy choices for Round 3 aren't going to be easy with a lot of good choices on offer. The safe picks will be that of Andre Russell and David Warner, while KL Rahul and Chris Gayle too offer good value.

Captain: Andre Russell/ KL Rahul

Vice Captain: David Warner/ Chris Gayle