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CricBattle Daily Fantasy Cricket League Tips

Punjab vs Chennai on April 16

Punjab Kings are playing with a new name in IPL 2021, and they would be hoping to have a change of fortunes as well. The Punjab team is yet to win a title in IPL history so far, and have failed miserably in the last few seasons. Since 2015, PBKS have not qualified for the playoffs even once and have finished at the bottom of the points table twice. Chennai Super Kings, on the other hand, have been performing pretty well but could not ensure a place in the Top 4 last season. It was the first time in the IPL history that CSK failed to qualify for the playoffs. Chennai Super Kings, after a poor campaign in 2020, lost their opening game against the Delhi Capitals in the 2021 edition of the Indian Premier League. After posting 188, they couldn’t survive the wrath of the DC batters, especially Prithvi Shaw and Shikhar Dhawan. Their second game is against the Punjab Kings on Friday, April 16 at the iconic Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai. The Kings, on the other hand, started with a four-run victory over the Rajasthan Royals at the same venue. But their bowling has a lot to be desired as Sanju Samson’s century almost led to their defeat. Against the Super Kings, PBKS don’t have the greatest of records by any means. But in Mumbai, out of two matches, the Punjab-based team has beaten CSK once back in 2014.

Best economical pick – Deepak Hooda batted at no.4 position in the last match and arrived at the crease after Chris Gayle lost his wicket in the 10th over. Along with his stupendous knock of 64, he also made a partnership of 105 runs with skipper KL Rahul off just 46 balls. This quick partnership helped Punjab Kings to post a mammoth total of 221-6 while batting first.

Top captains & vice captains – KL Rahul doesn’t have overly great numbers against CSK, having scored 292 runs at an average and strike rate of 36.50 and 126.96 with a top score of 71. But at the Wankhede Stadium, he has notched 310 runs thus far at an average of 103.33 with a top score of an unbeaten 100. In the previous game against the Royals, he got a 50-ball 91 and that should keep him in good stead. Despite the loss in their last game, the biggest positive for CSK was the promising show put up by Suresh Raina on return, as the southpaw smashed 54 from just 36 deliveries, including three fours and four maximums. He was involved in a couple of half-century stands, which bailed a reeling CSK out of trouble. Although, the efforts eventually went in vain.

Smart pick – Dwayne Bravo was CSK’s standout bowler against the Capitals as he picked up one wicket and gave away 28 runs.  Against Punjab, the veteran has picked up 22 wickets from the 55 overs he has bowled. Moreover, an average and economy of 19.36 and 7.75 respectively show that he tastes success while bowling to the PBKS batters. CSK would be hoping for a decent show for the pacer.

Cautious Pick – Jhye Richardson turned out to be the most expensive bowler for Punjab in the last game against Rajasthan Royals. In his four overs, the pacer went for 55 runs. However, he got the important wicket of Jos Buttler with a well-disguised slower delivery.

My XI – KL Rahul (Captain), Suresh Raina (Vice-Captain), Deepak Hooda, Dwayne Bravo, Chris Gayle, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Shami, Deepak Chahar, Mayank Aggarwal, MS Dhoni, Ravindra Jadeja