IPL 2016: Fantasy Championship guide KKR v GL

The transformation of Virat Kohli, from a young, spoilt Delhi brat to one of the most determined and responsible cricketers has been a delight to see. The flicks, the cover drives and the wristy straight drives were always a part of his arsenal but now there is something more, something that has made him believe that he can always, always go the distance with his batting.

For me, it has been his fitness and diet regime that has turned him into the run machine that he is today. The spark was always there, but that spark has now turned into a wildfire. Djokovic realized the importance of fitness in his sport and hasn’t stopped ruling it since. The Kohli mania has just begun, hop in and enjoy the ride.

RCB coasted to victory thanks to Kohli’s second T20 hundred and RPS might just have been knocked out from this year’s IPL. Dhoni’s captaincy tactics have been wayward, the bowlers have been even more so and that is why they find themselves in this rut. Only a victory in all their remaining games can give them even a slight chance of making it to the playoffs.

RCB, on the other hand, will like to build on this victory and start things afresh. Gayle needs to play; especially in Bangalore and Jordan needs to live up to the hype or else Kohli would end up with a lot of hundreds in losing causes.

Delhi Daredevils have tried to be cheeky with their tactics and while it paid off big time in the initial stages, the ‘fresh attitude’ of their management seems to have lost them their momentum. They need a win and quickly, otherwise all through the year they will rue the game when they tried to rest their key players.

Kings XI have had a mini resurgence and the Murali Vijay led side suddenly looks threatening. Their bowling has worked wonders for them, with Axar Patel picking up a hat-trick and Mohit Sharma and Sandy Sharma bowling some accurate yorkers in the death overs. Their batting does look a bit shaky and only when Hashim Amla’s brain (referring to his run out last night) reaches India, will they get the stability that they have long been hoping for.

Let’s get to business now!

Kolkata Knight Riders vs Gujarat Lions:

KKR have played their share of away games and are scheduled to play 3 games on the trot at the Eden. And we all know how good they can be at home.

Gujarat Lions have been given a reality check in the last few games and only an inspired performance from their top 3 can resurrect their campaign.

Now, I already have Dwayne Bravo and Suresh Raina in my team for this game and with the sinking ship of the Lions, I don’t see the need to bring any more of their players into my team. Dwayne Smith and Brendon McCullum have looked off colour and against a good spin and seam bowling attack, I just don’t see them returning to their old form.

The first player that I bring in for this game is Andre Russell. He is number one on the most valued players list this season (an award that he won last season as well) and with his all round skills he is sure to give you 70-80 points in every game. Get him in!

Robin Uthappa would be my second pick for this game. He is someone who has excelled for the past two seasons and is coming off a brilliant 70 in the last game. I opt for him over Gambhir because of his wicket keeping skills.

The other really handy pick for this game could be Piyush Chawla. His wrong ones have been really deadly and against a batting line up that doesn’t play spin very well, you can expect at least two wickets from him.

For the uncapped player, I go in with Shivil Kaushik. His unusual action and wrist spin could create a lot of trouble on a turning Eden Gardens track.

Batting captain: Robin Uthappa (if KKR bat second)/Suresh Raina (if GL bat second)

Bowling captain: Andre Russell

KKR v GL match preview – IPL 9 Match 38 Preview: Gujarat Lions look to get back to winning ways