South Africa would be dying to remove their tag of “Chokers” this time. “Home favorites” England has a lot of advantage as the tournament is being held in their backyard.
Who will be the top performers this time? Check our Match 1 dream 11 prediction:
Pitch condition – In the last 5 matches held at the Kennington, Oval the average score in the first innings is between 280-285. This means you can expect a score above 300 for sure considering the lenient rules placed for batsmen. Also fast bowlers will be a preferable option than spinners in the Oval.
Wicket-Keeper:
Quinten De Cock – The South African has been amazing with the bat and also behind the stumps. His consistency makes him our pick for the evening.
In case you are creating teams on gaming portals, choosing Jos Buttler can be ideal as everyone would be choosing De Cock. This will give you an added advantage. There are some portals where you can choose 2 wicket-keepers too. In such cases, you can choose both!
Batsmen:
Hashim Amla/ Jason Roy:
Both the openers are amazing and in red hot form. But choosing one of them seems to be the issue in the playing 11. So depending on who will bat first choose either of them. If England bat first, choose Roy and Amla if Africa bat first.
Faf Du Plessis:
Du Plessis was in tremendous form for Chennai Super Kings. He sure can pace his innings well and RSA will hope he can continue his form here too.
Joe Root:
Considered as one of the Big 4 (Smith, Kohli, Williamson and Root), a lot is expected out of Root. He has good match sense and understands how to pace his innings. Getting him out will be the key for Africa.
Jonny Bairstow:
Another player who shined a lot in the IPL was Bairstow. He has been in red hot form and is always striking the ball pressuring the opposition. You cannot miss him in your team.
All-Rounders:
Ben Stokes:
Stokes had a fair IPL and did his job for the team. Playing him here will help you only because Stokes will surely bowl few overs and will also strike with the bat. To add to all this, he also is an amazing fielder.
Chris Morris / Andile Phehlukwayo:
Depending on who is in the playing 11 among these two, you can make your pick. Out of these two however we would choose Morris as he has more experience and has been a regular for the team. In case you want to take a chance on gaming portals with a differential player, Andile Phehlukwayo is the one to opt for.
Bowlers:
Lungi Ngidi / Imran Tahir:
Perhaps one of the toughest decisions will be to choose among these two. Ngidi is the ideal choice for this pitch. But Tahir is a bowler who can be difficult to bat on in any pitch. Our choice however is with Ngidi.
Chris Woakes:
Woakes is like the wild card. He can bowl well and he also is a power hitter. While you can expect him to continue his regular bowling duties, please don’t expect much of batting unless you think England will lose more than 6 wickets easily.
Jofra Archar:
One of the last minute additions in any World Cup Squad, Archer was the find of the IPL. His skill and talent is good enough reason for you to choose him in your team. Hence do not miss out in choosing him.
Kasigo Rabada:
Finally, Rabada is a must pick as per us. He is dangerous and can easily break through any team. He is fierce, bowls a good line and is very disciplined. He finished 2nd in the wicket takers list for IPL where he lost to his team mate Tahir by just 1 wicket. The funny part is that Rabada played 5 match lesser than Tahir!!
Differential Picks:
Moeen Ali: In case you feel like any one of these players isn’t fit enough for your dream team, then choosing Moeen Ali can solve your problem. He is a specialist spinner and also can bat well.
You can now predict the total match score with these tips. So visit our game link, predict the total score, be the ultimate winner and win many prizes!
