Ashwin v Gambhir in battle of revamped teams
Both Delhi Daredevils and Kings XI Punjab had disappointing seasons in 2017, but having plugged a few gaps at the auction, they will be keen to see how things work on the field
Big picture
In the news
The likely XIs
Strategy punt
Stats that matter
- Let's get straight to it. Gambhir v Ashwin. Since 2015, the contest has been skewed in the bowler's favour, with only 43 runs scored off 47 balls, which includes two wickets. In fact, Kings XI might feel like they have Gambhir covered with their spinners. In the same time period, Axar Patel has conceded only 36 runs off 42 balls to the Daredevils captain.
- There are days when Chris Gayle might seem unstoppable. But they come less frequently now and Daredevils would hope to keep that trend going with Chris Morris, who will likely tuck the left-hander up with his pace and bounce. The head-to-head reads: 40 runs, 34 balls, three wickets.
- David Miller has made 141 runs off 94 balls from each of Daredevils' available bowlers, and has been dismissed only once - by Amit Mishra. He might not have played any short-form cricket since February, when he struggled badly against more of India's wristspinners, but he should like starting the IPL against a set of bowlers who have rarely got him out. Additionally, he has made 607 runs at a strike-rate of 155 in Mohali. Miller won't get too many better settings to get back in form.
- So Kings XI's finisher has a question mark over him. Their No. 4 isn't as threatening as he once was. They don't have too many options at No. 3. They do have a fairly long tail. All of that makes the top order's job fairly difficult and the Daredevils can add to it if they realise that since 2015, KL Rahul has made only 165 runs off spin bowling at a strike-rate of 118, while losing his wicket four times. Against the quicks, he hits at 145 per 100 balls.
Fantasy picks
- Opening batsmen are usually the best bets and Colin Munro makes a compelling case. Since 2015, he has a strike-rate of 157 against fast bowlers and 145 against spin and in Mohali's hit-through-the-line conditions, he can be quite brutal.
- Andrew Tye's acquisition should help Kings XI overcome their biggest struggle in 2017 - death bowling. They conceded 10.37 runs per over last season. Tye on the other hand had an economy rate of 7.7 - among fast bowlers who delivered at least 30 balls in the final stages of innings, he comes in at third, behind Adam Milne and Ashish Nehra. If the team was willing to shell out USD 1.1 million for him in the auction, you could probably take a punt on him in your XI.
Alagappan Muthu is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo