T10 League 2018, Match 2: Kerala Knights and Pakhtoons – Dream11 Fantasy Tips

Kerala Knights, the winners of the inaugural edition of the T10 league, will begin their title defence in the second game of the new season. They will face Pakhtoons, who crashed out from the league stage last time. Eoin Morgan, the champion captain, will have the services of Paul Stirling and Sohail Tanvir, who excelled for Kerala in the previous season. They also have the universe boss Chris Gayle on their side, who will be trying his luck in this format for the first time.

Pakhtoons will be led by the veteran all-rounder Shahid Afridi. The Pakistan player began the T10 league with a hat-trick to his name in the last season. Afridi has a couple of impactful T20 players in his side and will be hoping to come out good in this tournament. The last edition witnessed a gradual rise in the team totals that recorded an average first-innings score between 110 and 120. This season is expected to see scores on the same lines with the chasing teams having an upper hand.

Match Details:

The second match of the T10 League will be played between Kerala Knights and Pakhtoons at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium in Sharjah.

The match starts at 8:45 PM local time (4:45 PM GMT) (10:15 PM IST).

Pitch Condition/Report:

The pitch at Sharjah hardly changes despite playing two T20 games in a day and could be similar in case of the T10 league as the game lasts only 20 overs. Under lights, the ball tends to come on to the bat and the dew factor could play a key role in this night game.

Squads:

Kerala Knights:

Eoin Morgan (C), Abdul Shakoor, Fabian Allen, Tom Curran, Chris Gayle, Benny Howell, Imran Nazir, Sandeep Lamichhane, Mohammad Naveed, Wayne Parnell, Kieron Pollard, RS Sodhi, Sohail Tanvir, Paul Stirling, Upul Tharanga.

Pakhtoons:

Shahid Afridi (C), Liam Dawson, Cameron Delport, Andrew Fletcher, Gulbadin Naib, Colin Ingram, Mohammad Irfan, Muhammad Kaleem, Shafiqullah Shafaq, Shapoor Zadran, Sharafuddin Ashraf, RP Singh, Sohail Khan, Chadwick Walton, David Willey.

Probable XI:

Kerala Knights:

Eoin Morgan (C), Imran Nazir, Chris Gayle, Paul Stirling, Benny Howell, Kieron Pollard, Fabian Allen, Tom Curran, Sandeep Lamichhane, Mohammad Naveed/Wayne Parnell, Sohail Tanvir.

Pakhtoons:

Shahid Afridi (C), Cameron Delport, Andrew Fletcher, Chadwick Walton, Colin Ingram, Liam Dawson, Gulbadin Naib, David Willey, Mohammad Irfan, Sharafuddin Ashraf, Sohail Khan.

Power Picks:

Paul Stirling was the 3rd highest run-getter in the previous edition of the tournament where he aggregated 181 runs across five matches including two fifties. Sohail Tanvir picked up five wickets in that tournament and conceded only at an economy rate of 7.8. England’s Benny Howell can be a surprise package with his all-round skills.

Best Playing XI:

Chris Gayle, Colin Ingram, Paul Stirling, Cameron Delport, David Willey, Liam Dawson, Benny Howell, Sohail Tanvir, Sandeep Lamichhane, Wayne Parnell.

Captain and Vice-Captain Selection:

Chris Gayle will have his first taste of T10 cricket and will hopeful about making it a memorable one. He has been amongst runs in the recent APL T20 and got off to a start in the last week’s MSL game. Paul Stirling can also be made the captain due to his success in this format. Cameron Delport and Colin Ingram can be considered for the vice-captain option.

Expert Advice:

Due to some of the top players in both the squads, it is unlikely to see players from Afghanistan make a cut into the first XI. The Indian players RP Singh and RS Sodhi will also be on the bench.

Probable Winners:

Kerala Knights might get a tough fight from the Pakhtoons but players with T10 experience could save the day for them.

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