IPL 2022 | Kolkata Knight Riders - Fantasy Tips

Kolkata Knight Riders will be looking to go one better this season and win the title for the third time. They have assembled a good squad. Let’s look at the hot and cold picks for your fantasy XI from the squad of Kolkata.

Untamed: This category is for players who are guaranteed to give some valuable points to your squad, in 9 out of 10 days. They are the strongest representatives of the team.

  1. Shreyas Iyer: Shreyas Iyer is coming into the tournament being unbeaten in the series against Sri Lanka. He scored 204 runs in the series from 3 matches at a strike rate over 150. His average fantasy point per game in the IPL is 32.82, but this year you can expect even bigger returns from the man. Pick the KKR skipper and make him your Captain, for both small and big leagues. Mostly, you will be happy with this selection.

Shilly Shally: If you are a risk-taker or if you want to make it big in the grand leagues, these are your players.

  1. Andre Russell: Andre Russell has an average of 41.78 fantasy points per game. But the average does not speak of the fact that very big performances in some matches have skewed the statistics. If you select him as the captain of the team, he will give you way more than you expect the day he clicks. But those would be rare occurrences. Although against Chennai he scores at a strike rate of 169. Pick him in the team for the first match and make him the captain if you want to win a grand league. Who knows the opening day might be the Russell show.

  2. Sunil Narine: One more man who could be a hit or a miss. His average fantasy point per game is 39.48, but in this case, also some brilliant performances especially at the beginning of his IPL career have skewed the numbers. His economical bowling though would give you average returns most days, but depending on his batting would be a risk.

  3. Varun Chakravarthy: He is the mystery factor in the KKR bowling lineup. But as time is passing batters are playing him out carefully and thus, he ends up with 1 or 2 wickets in a game. He returns an average of 16.42 fantasy points per game, so most fantasy players will ignore the man. If you are going with multiple teams in the grand league, make him the captain in one or two of them, there will be days when he will change the course of a match with a brilliant spell.

Unhailed: Players will give you consistent returns taking up fewer credit points.

  1. Ajinkya Rahane: Rahane is a man who will go about doing his job very silently. Many would ignore him given the fact that he has recently been dropped from the national squad. But with an average return of 27.49, he is a must if you are a safe and small league player. On most of the days, he will give you some valuable points if he is in your team.

  2. Venkatesh Iyer: Venkatesh Iyer was one of the most important reasons for Kolkata’s turnaround in the second phase of the last season. In his short IPL career, he has scored runs at an average of 41. So, he is going to be one consistent point fetcher for you eating up relatively fewer credit points.

  3. Nitish Rana: Rana is a quality middle-order batsman, who gets a start most of the days. Nitish Rana on average gives 35 fantasy points per game. For small league players, he is a must-pick. 

Stealthy Warriors: They could be the x-factors in your team as they are still unexplored in the IPL.

  1. Shivam Mavi: Shivam Mavi has been unlucky if his IPL career is considered. The potential in this young man is great according to the critics. He has the reputation of clocking 135 plus km/h on average. So, Mavi might be a player who you can take a risk with and see how much return he gives you.

  2. Sam Billings: He has one memorable performance in the IPL for CSK against KKR. He won the match for CSK single-handedly. After that he has not got many chances, so many might ignore this young English wicket-keeper. But with a definite potential of being a match-winner, he will be a good pick for grand league players.

Imposters: Players who will take you down the points table on most days.

  1. Umesh Yadav: Umesh Yadav will be bowling the hard overs for KKR this year in the death. With a general economy rate of 8.51, he will be taking the hit in most of the matches. If you don’t want to lose precious points earned by other members of your team, ignore the Indian pacer.

  2. Tim Southee: In IPL Southee has played 44 matches and has picked up 31 wickets in them at a high average of 44. Most days he will return wicket less not giving you much returns. Try and avoid him in most of the matches.

Hot Picks: Shreyas Iyer, Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana.

Risky Options: Andre Russell, Sunil Narine.

Stay Away From: Umesh Yadav, Tim Southee.

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IPL 2022 | Chennai Super Kings vs Kolkata Knight Riders | Match 1 - Preview, Predictions, Probable XI, Fantasy XI

And, so here we are! Finally, after weeks of anticipation, analysis, predictions etc., the biggest party of the summer- the Indian Premier League (IPL) - will commence on Saturday (March 26), where defending champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK)lock horns with last years' runners-up Kolkata Knight Riders at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. Saturday's game will usher a new era for CSK and IPL, as it will be the first that MS Dhoni will not lead the 'Yellow Army'. The 2022 season is expected to be Dhoni's swan song from the lucrative T20 league, but no one in their wildest dreams would have thought he won't be leading his beloved franchise for one final time this year. But, as they say, all good things must come to an end. Ravindra Jadeja has been picked as Dhoni's successor, and he will be making his captaincy debut on Saturday. It won't be an easy task for Jadeja, though he has such humongous shoes to fill, plus the fact that he has never captained a T20 side before. But, the good thing is that he will have the presence of Dhoni on the field for guidance. Speaking of CSK's squad, the defending champions retained most of their core during the mega-auction. They have replaced Faf du Plessis with another overseas opener in Devon Conway. Still, their top-5 remains the same in the form of Ruturaj Gaikwad, Moeen Ali, Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu, followed by MSD and all-rounders like Jadeja and Dwayne Bravo. Moeen Ali will miss the first game as he has just arrived in the country. However, Shivam Dube is expected to make it to starting XI, while Adam Milne and Tushar Deshpande are likely to spearhead the pace department. Death bowling is a matter of concern for CSK, and with Chris Jordan being not the force he once used to be, the onus will once again be on Bravo (albeit he's a pale shadow of himself) to step up to the party. It will also be interesting to see if CSK take a punt on rookie seam-bowling all-rounder in the form of Rajvardhan Hangargekar. Like the last season, CSK has a deep batting line-up and multi skill set of cricketers. Also, with Moeen not available for the first game, CSK may be tempted to slot in Mahesh Theekshana in the playing XI to bolster their spin department. As for the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), they will also kickstart a new era under the leadership of Shreyas Iyer. KKR's top-4 is slated to be Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana, Ajinkya Rahane and skipper Iyer, who more or less operate at the same tempo. So, it will be interesting to see if they go with this top-4 or will they use Sunil Narine as a pinch-hitter during the powerplay. Venkatesh had a brilliant season last year, and the onus will again be on him to provide explosive starts to his side. Venky Iyer's strike rate dips after the powerplay, and that's where the likes of Nitish Rana and Shreyas, a renowned spin-basher, will come in handy. Last season, KKR struggled with their middle-order batting, and this time, the onus will be on Shreyas, Sam Billings and Andre Russell to ensure it doesn't happen again. With Pat Cummins unavailable for the first few games, Tim Southee would get a place in the starting XI. He, alongside Umesh Yadav and Shivam Mavi, are set to spearhead the fast bowling unit. One of KKR's major issues with the ball in the past few seasons is their inability to pick wickets in the power play consistently. But, that shouldn't be an issue this time, given the fact that Umesh and Southee are proven power play specialists. That said, their death bowling still leaves a lot to be desired, and it's expected that they will have to turn to Russell and Narine to do the dirty work. Match Details: Date - 26th March 2022 Time - 07:30 PM IST Venue - Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai Broadcast - Star Sports, Disney Hotstar Pitch Report: The pitch at Wankhede has traditionally been a safe haven for batters. True bounce and pace off the surface make for delightful stroke-making and short dimensions of the ground, making it even easier for batters. Having said that, fast bowlers also get a fair share of assistance due to the pace in the pitch. Moreover, the dew factor is immense here, so chasing has always been a go-to option for teams. Key Stats: - CSK boast of an 18-8 lead over KKR in head-to-head encounters. At Wankhede, it's 1-0 in favor of CSK. Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Robin Uthappa, Devon Conway, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja(c), Shivam Dube, MS Dhoni(w), Dwayne Bravo, Chris Jordan, Rajvardhan Hangargekar, Maheesh Theekshana, Adam Milne, Mitchell Santner, Tushar Deshpande, Hari Nishanth, N Jagadeesan, Subhranshu Senapati, Prashant Solanki, Mukesh Choudhary, KM Asif, Simarjeet Singh, Bhagath Varma Kolkata Knight Riders: Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer(c), Sam Billings(w), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Chamika Karunaratne, Shivam Mavi, Varun Chakravarthy, Umesh Yadav, Rasikh Salam, Mohammad Nabi, Sheldon Jackson, Baba Indrajith, Rinku Singh, Anukul Roy, Pratham Singh, Abhijeet Tomar, Aman Hakim Khan, Tim Southee, Ashok Sharma, Ramesh Kumar Probable Playing XI: Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja (c), MS Dhoni (wk), Shivam Dube, Dwayne Bravo, Tushar Deshpande, Chris Jordan / Maheesh Theekshana, Adam Milne Kolkata Knight Riders: Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Nitish Rana, Shreyas Iyer (c), Sam Billings (wk), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Tim Southee, Shivam Mavi, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakravarthy CE Fantasy XI: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer, Ambati Rayudu, Ravindra Jadeja, Andre Russell, MS Dhoni, Sunil Narine, Dwayne Bravo, Varun Chakravarthy, Adam Milne Captain: Ravindra Jadeja Vice-captain: Andre Russell