Fantasy: Back in-form batters Warner, Tilak to make you fantasy leaders

Two teams with similar fortunes - Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals - will take on each other for an elusive two points. Mumbai have kicked the season off in the worst possible manner, with a loss against both Royal Challengers Bangalore and Chennai Super Kings, away and home respectively. 

On the other hand, Delhi have started the season with a hattrick of losses, against Lucknow Super Giants, Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals. The Warner-led side would want to make amends in the clash against MI, as both teams seek to break the drought. 

Ground Details and Team Combination

Traditionally, the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi is notoriously known for its relatively low-scoring encounters. But if the trends stay true from the last three years, the fixture between Delhi-Mumbai could be another high-scoring encounter. Across the last 10 innings at the venue, the average first-innings score has been 188.

However, if teams batting first need a substantial advantage, they need to eye a total of excess 200, something that the Royals did back in 2021 when they defended 220. Apart from that, all four other games have been won by teams chasing, which has been the norm at the venue, where batting becomes easier in the second innings. 

Pacers have had a substantial advantage over spin at the venue, with 34 of the 46 wickets in the last ten innings, which is a whopping 73%. However, the spinners average better, at 36.1 in comparison to 40.2. 

Suggested TeamWhile you could go for the above team, you can also choose your team from Cricket.com’s Fantasy Research Centre. You can use this tool to build your team with the help of algorithms. Then, based on your preferences, the platform will guide you through creating the ideal fantasy XI.

Captaincy suggestions

For small leagues: David Warner (capt), Tilak Varma (vice-capt)

For grand leagues:  Suryakumar Yadav (capt), Lalit Yadav (vice-capt)

Stats that matter

As aforementioned, Arun Jaitley Stadium has aided pacers in the last three years, and that could help the hosts, Delhi more than the visitors. In three games this season, Delhi’s pacers' average 35.4, with 11 wickets but their opposition, Mumbai have the second-worst average for any team in this year’s tournament at 69. 

Even if Delhi’s fortunes have been the worst in the tournament, their skipper, Warner has stood tall with the bat in hand, scoring 113 runs, at an average of 56.5, only losing his wicket twice in three games. There is a massive difference between Warner and Axar Patel - Delhi’s second best-batter (36 runs). 

Since IPL 2022, Tilak Varma has been the go-to-batter for the Mumbai franchise, with 503 runs, averaging a staggering 41.92, including bringing up three half-centuries. Even against pace, Varma has scored 261 runs, showing how adept he is with the bat. 

Yet again, the onus could be on Kumar Kartikeya in this relatively underwhelming Mumbai spin attack, with the MP spinner picking up six wickets. Against the likes of Warner, who have tended to show vulnerability against spin, the left-arm spinner could be a valuable asset for the franchise. 

Grand League Punts

Suryakumar Yadav has drawn quite a blank in the last five games that he has walked out to bat, with scores of 1, 15, 0, 0, 0. For someone who has been MI’s pillar since IPL 2018, it is a tough sight to visualise. But Delhi are one side that Surya enjoys batting against, with 352 runs, his second-most against any franchise in IPL history. Given his lacklustre form, chances are that not a lot will have him in their fantasy setup. That’s where you could win big. 

Even though he wasn’t used with the ball at all against Rajasthan, there is a strong opportunity for Delhi to throw the ball to Lalit Yadav. Off-spinners have dismissed Kishan six times, and his strike-rate too is 100 against them. Plus his batting too could fetch you a lot of points, given how he performed against the Royals (38 off 24).

Here are the Top 10 Criclytics Projections

Probable XIs

Mumbai Indians XI: Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan (wk), Cameron Green, Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Tim David, Arshad Khan, Hrithik Shokeen, Jofra Archer, Nehal Wadhera, Jason Behrendorff

Delhi Capitals XI: David Warner (c), Prithvi Shaw, Manish Pandey, Rilee Rossouw, Rovman Powell, Lalit Yadav, Axar Patel, Abishek Porel (wk), Anrich Nortje, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar/Kamlesh Nagarkoti