The 2019 Indian Premier League (IPL) season heads into match 49 with Royal Challengers Bangalore set to host Rajasthan Royals on Tuesday.
As fans, watching the action is not the only thing to look forward to – IPL fantasy games mean you have the opportunity to get involved as well.
As the IPL’s official partner, Dream11 runs a daily contest for each game apart from the default format which is conducted per round.
Here, we focus on helping you navigate your way through the former.
BATSMAN
AB de Villiers – Royal Challengers Bangalore (10.5 credits)
No other batsmen invokes as much fear as AB de Villiers who has still managed to make a decent contribution despite Bangalore’s struggles.
The South African’s form has been mixed this campaign but there has been no stopping him once he sets himself at the crease. Five half-centuries have come from de Villiers’ bat while his average is a terrific one at nearly 54 runs.
He failed to fire in the most recent clash against Delhi Capitals but he will be determined to put in a big show in what is the side’s final outing at home.
AB de Villiers (265.4) has gone past Andre Russell (255.8) in terms of the highest batting strike-rate during the death this season. #RCBvKXIP #IPL2019
— Shubh AggarWall (@shubh_chintak) April 24, 2019
BOWLER
Shreyas Gopal – Rajasthan Royals (9 credits)
In the reverse fixture between the two sides, Royal Challengers’ batting line up was blown away by a Shreyas Gopal storm with the Rajasthan leg-spinner picking up three wickets in his side’s victory.
More than the wickets, it was the manner in which Gopal took them which was impressive with the leggie sending back both Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers.
Being a local Karnataka boy, the Chinnaswamy Stadium is a ground Gopal knows all too well and he could wreck further havoc on RCB come Tuesday.
With 15 dismissals to his name this season, Gopal is the fourth highest wicket-taker and he looks primed to add to that tally.
WATCH: Shreyas Gopal's 3-wkt haul derails RCB
— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 2, 2019
📹📹https://t.co/XMPmVZPRDe #RRvRCB
ALL-ROUNDER
Marcus Stoinis – Royal Challengers Bangalore (9 credits)
There are not too many all-round options on either side but with Moeen Ali’s tournament now over, Marcus Stoinis seems like the best pick.
The Australian all-rounder has been decent if not excellent with the bat where he has scored 211 runs at an average of over 70 while coming in at the death overs.
Stoinis hasn’t been too shabby with the ball either with his gentle medium-pace fetching two wickets at an economy-rate of less than nine runs an over.
He has mostly come in to bat with just a few overs remaining but he is capable of putting together a big innings if promoted up the order.
WICKETKEEPER
Sanju Samson – Rajasthan Royals (9 credits)
While RCB’s Parthiv Patel has been in solid form of late, his Rajasthan counterpart Sanju Samson wins this battle due to his sheer brilliance at times.
The Kerala-born wicketkeeper batsman showed what he is capable of with a superb ton against Sunrisers Hyderabad earlier this season and has played a few other handy knocks for Rajasthan over the course of the season.
While he might be guilty of throwing away promising starts in cheap fashion at times, Samson is one of the most elegant batsmen to watch when in full flow. With all the classical shots in his book, the right-hander could strike it big on a Bangalore pitch where runs have flowed all season.
He is coming off the back of an unbeaten 48 against SRH and should be in good touch for the RCB clash.
I am always flummoxed about why Sanju Samson isn't playing at the highest level. He has everything needed. I would be very keen to know what is coming in the way of consistency, which is what is preventing him from being a regular India player.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) April 27, 2019
CAPTAIN – Sanju Samson
VICE CAPTAIN – AB de Villiers
