Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders are set to face each other in the inauguration match of Tata IPL 2022 on 26th March from 7:30 IST at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
Team Updates:
MS Dhoni has left the captaincy of CSK for Ravindra Jadeja and will be representing the franchise as a player. Jadeja will have huge shoes to fill in and reciprocate the trust and faith shown in him by the franchise and Dhoni. On the other hand, Shreyas Iyer has left Delhi Capitals for the captaincy of KKR and will be responsible for justifying his actions for the two-time champions with the opening game against CSK at Wankhede.
Some of the marquee players from both teams might miss out on the clash between the behemoths. Moeen Ali from CSK had visa issues that just cleared a couple of days ago, so it is highly possible that he might not be in yellow colours on Saturday. Meanwhile, KKR will miss the services of their premium players Pat Cummins and Aaron Finch for the first few matches due to the ongoing Australia tour of Pakistan.
Probable Playing XIs:
CSK: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Robin Uthappa, Ambati Rayudu, Shivam Dube, MS Dhoni (wk), Ravindra Jadeja (c), Dwayne Bravo, Chris Jordan, R. Hangargaker, Adam Milne
KKR: Venkatesh Iyer, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer (c), Nitish Rana, Sam Billings (wk), Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Chamika Karunaratne, Shivam Mavi, Varun Chakravarthy, Umesh Yadav
Batter to Watch Out:
Shreyas Iyer, fresh off an excellent T20i series against Sri Lanka, where he became the first Indian player to score more than 200 runs in the three-match T20i series, will be the player to look out for. According to us, Iyer will score the most runs in the match regardless of the results.
Bowler to Watch Out:
With his uncanny knack of taking wickets while splurging loads of runs, Umesh Yadav may be the best bet for the player who will account for the most batters in the clash of heavyweights.
Predicted Winner:
Chennai Super Kings will surely give reason to its fans to colour the Wankhede in the ‘Yellove Army’ in their first tournament match. Super Kings are the favourites to win the game and the tournament for the fifth time.
Cricreads Fantasy XI:
Ruturaj Gaikwad, Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (c), Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Andre Russell, Chamika Karunaratne, Dwayne Bravo, Adam Milne, Varun Chakravarthy,
Also read: 8 Best Players to Win Purple Cap in IPL 2022
