Deadline: May 5, 2019 at 4 PM IST
Venue: Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali
Pitch, scores, and conditions
The previous match in Mohali produced as many as 368 runs in 38 overs. The pitch is so good that a batter need not move his feet. A reasonable hand and eye coordination should do the job.
Given the match starts at 4 PM, dew won’t affect the match. The captains, however, would still want to bowl first. The chasing teams have won four times in six games here. The pitch gets only better as the match progresses. Fasten your seatbelts for a humdinger of a contest.
Probable XI for Punjab: Chris Gayle, KL Rahul, Mayank Agarwal, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Mandeep Singh, Sam Curran, R Ashwin (c), Andrew Tye, Mohammad Shami, Murugan Ashwin, Arshdeep Singh/Ankit Rajpoot
Probable XI for Chennai: Faf du Plessis, Shane Watson, Suresh Raina, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Ambati Rayudu, Kedar Jadhav, Ravindra Jadeja, DJ Bravo, Deepak Chahar, Harbhajan Singh, Imran Tahir
Fantasy team
We have opted for a fantasy cricket team on the basis of players’ impact, recent performances, and credit points.
Note that you can, now, change your team after the toss. You can also check players’ performances in the last 5 matches. Tap on the players’ names to get the data while making your fantasy team.
My XI: MS Dhoni (c & wk), Chris Gayle (vc), Lokesh Rahul, Suresh Raina, Mayank Agarwal, R Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Sam Curran, Imran Tahir, Harbhajan Singh, Mohammad Shami
Previous encounter
Chennai bowlers smothered Punjab the last time these teams met. Riding on du Plessis’s fighting half-century and Dhoni’s death-over hitting, Chennai posted a respectable total of 160 for 3.
In reply, Rahul and Sarfraz added 110 runs for the third wicket. In an ideal scenario, Punjab would have won. 100-run partnership often end up on the winning side, but Chennai does not let trend take course. Chennai made Rahul and Sarfraz believe that they are in control of the game, simultaneously producing dots bots and keeping the runs in check. Punjab eventually fell short by 22 runs.
Players to watch out for
A fit Dhoni is a dangerous sign. He seems to have recovered from his back spasm and illness. But a confident Dhoni is even more dangerous. He came to bat at No. 4 against Delhi – a position his fans want him to bat at, be it for Chennai or India. He bludgeoned 44 off 22 and sucked the momentum away from Delhi, and it eventually turned out to be the turning point of the match. Dhoni later add cherry on the top, taking three faster-than-light stumpings. In all, he has scored 358 runs and taken 12 dismissals in 11 games.
Tahir has been an unstoppable force this season, having claimed for 21 wickets in 13 games. With Rabada ruled out for the remainder of the season, Tahir is more than likely to dethrone him from the top position.
Despite Gayle and Rahul scoring 984 runs between them, their team has managed to win only five times in 13 games. Rahul especially has been guilty of batting slow at crucial junctures. Nonetheless, in a game of fantasy cricket, an individual performance takes precedence over a team’s result. Choose your XI wisely.
Also get to know the tips & tricks on how to play fantasy cricket.