Time: October 22, 7:30 PM IST
Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Pitch report
Although the pitch has some juice for the pacers, it has patches where the ball stops and comes to the bat slower than expected. Here’s a fantasy tip of the day: add at least three bowlers in your team, as relying too heavily on batsmen to fetch you points has been risky so far.
Power players
David Warner has only two single-digit scores in 9 matches. His lowest two-digit score is 28. Hyderabad may not be dominating this year, but Warner has been consistently fetching runs for them. With 331 runs at a strike rate of 124, he is the best batsman for his franchise.
No matter at what position he bats, Jos Butler knows only the attacking brand of cricket. He took the crease at 28 for 3 in pursuit of 126 runs. While he let Steve Smith take his time to settle, he himself fired on all cylinders. He was adjudged Man of the Match for a brave knock of 70 off 48. Overall, he has scored the most runs for his team: 262 runs at a strike rate of 144. He has been one of the popular vice-captains on fantasy apps in India.
Jofra Archer has taken 6 wickets in 4 matches at Dubai. His 13 wickets included two three-wicket hauls – one of which came at the very venue. More importantly, he has gone wicketless only twice in 10 matches.
Jonny Bairstow has been in fine form, scoring 316 runs at an impressive average of 35. At Dubai, he has scored 2 fifties in 5 games.
Smart picks
In the previous game between these teams, Rahul Tewatia was adjudged Player of the Match for his incredible knock of 45* runs in a tough chase. Rajasthan were stuttering at 78 for 5, needing another 80 runs off 48 balls. Along with Riyan Parag (42 off 26), Tewatia snatched the game away from Rajasthan. Overall, he has managed 222 runs and 7 wickets in 10 matches, making him a handy player in fantasy sports.
Rashid Khan has been focusing more on containing runs than taking wickets. He has picked up 11 wickets in 9 games, maintaining an economy of 5.52. At the venue, he has 5 wickets in 4 games.
Steven Smith seems a better batsman at No. 4. He thrives when his team is in trouble, and more importantly, his team needs him to hold the innings together in middle overs. His last two scores read 57 and 26*.
T Natarajan has been impressive with his left-arm pace bowling, taking four two-wicket hauls in 9 games.
Probable XIs
Rajasthan: Robin Uthappa, Ben Stokes, Sanju Samson (wk), Steven Smith (c), Jos Buttler, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Jofra Archer, Shreyas Gopal, Ankit Rajpoot, Kartik Tyagi
Hyderabad: David Warner (c), Jonny Bairstow (wk), Manish Pandey, Kane Williamson/Mohammad Nabi, Jason Holder, Priyam Garg, Vijay Shankar, Abdul Samad, Rashid Khan, Sandeep Sharma, T Natarajan, Basil Thampi