Cheteshwar Pujara celebrates 10 years in international cricket, thanks his fans for support

IPL 2020 | CSK vs RCB: Match Preview, Predicted XI & Dream 11 Fantasy Picks

The Indian Premier League for the Chennai Super Kings has reached a point from where they can’t do anything until and unless they start winning. For the Royal Challengers Bangalore, they can still take it a bit easy as they have already accumulated three wins in their favour. However, this game would be a test for Kohli and Co. as they face a Chennai which would not only be giving their best to show the world what they are made up of, but also because they have been pushed to the wall so back that they only way out is forward. While in the last game, Chennai was particularly beaten by their own mistakes again as it got all stuck in the web created by Dinesh Karthik as the master captain of Kolkata Knight Riders. Bangalore, on the other hand, were overwhelmed by Delhi Capitals in a classic one-sided affair. Dhoni and his men need to balance their chase Half the season is gone and yet the Super Kings seem to find themselves in a peculiar position of not being able to execute their chases. It is ironic that MS Dhoni, considered the master of chases is not being able to pull out even one chase. Along with the strategy change of playing a finisher in place of Kedar Jadhav, the other batsmen like Ambati Rayudu and Faf du Plessis need to buck up as well. Ravindra Jadeja and Sam Curran need to play the dual role they have been entrusted with. A team wouldn’t be able to win if a batsman coming in the 18th over is playing with a strike rate of less than 100, therefore that needs to change. For RCB, it’s all about finding the perfect balance The Challengers in every season have had the problem of death bowling. But added to that is the decline in the form of their captain charismatic Virat Kohli this season. It is during this patchy form of his that others like de Villiers and Finch need to work out on their batting skills and provide the support needed to young Devdutt Padikkal. Along with batting, the bowling department is lacking in terms of wicket-takers. Although Washington Sundar is bowling quite well, his inability to pick wickets is causing harm to other bowlers . It is at this moment that the Sirajs and Sainis need to come into action. With Chris Morris getting fitter and available to play, chances are that he would be able to share the load from the other pacers. Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore: Match Details Match number- 25 Date: October 10, 2020 at 7:30 PM IST, 14:00 AM GMT, 6:00 PM Local Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai Pitch: The Dubai wicket has been a true wicket over the games and for this game a fresh wicket would be used giving both the teams an equal opportunity, not only to pace their chase if batting second but also give spinners some grip, making the toss a bit irrelevant. However, the fact that teams have been choosing to field first would add to the calculations of the team management. Weather and Toss: The weather in Dubai has been very friendly for cricket and with humidity getting down; the dew factor would come to play as well. But along with the due, there would be a cool breeze which would help the swing bowlers in the evening. Such scenarios would also make the team winning the toss to choose field first. Team News Chennai Super Kings Chennai Super Kings as a team don’t like to experiment much with their playing XI, but the kind of form that they are going with would only mean that they are left with no other choice but to replace Kedar Jadhav in the 11. That is the only change that one can think of, with Ruturaj Gaikwad replacing him most probably. Expected XI Shane Watson, Faf du Plessis, Ambati Rayudu, MS Dhoni (c & wk), Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ravindra Jadeja, Dwayne Bravo, Sam Curran, Shardul Thakur, Deepak Chahar, Karn Sharma Royal Challengers Bangalore: Chris Morris has been declared fit and therefore he would likely play in place of Moeen Ali. However, if the team likes to do much change and pull a rabbit out of their hat, they might play Morris in place of Aaron Finch and let Moeen Ali be there. In such a scenario, Mohammad Siraj could be replaced with Parthiv Patel, for he could open the innings with Padikkal. Expected XI Devdutt Padikkal, Aaron Finch/ Parthiv Patel, Virat Kohli (c), AB de Villiers (wk), Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Washington Sundar, Isuru Udana, Navdeep Saini, Chris Morris/ Mohammad Siraj, Yuzvendra Chahal Chennai Super Kings vs Royal Challengers Bangalore: Dream 11 team and suggestions AB de Villiers (wk), Shane Watson (Vc), Virat Kohli (c), Ambati Rayudu Devdutt Padikkal, Chris Morris, Dwayne Bravo, Sam Curran, Isuru Udana, Deepak Chahar, Yuzvendra Chahal, Captain: Virat Kohli Vice-captain: Shane Watson

IPL 2020: 'They think it's a government job' - Virender Sehwag slams CSK batsmen

Coming hard at the CSK batsmen who have been failing to bat well and show enough hunger to win the game for the team, former Indian opener Virender Shewag has said that the attitude of many of these batsmen is that of government employees, who are sure of their salaries at the end of the month irrespective of their performances. "In my view, some of the Chennai Super Kings batsmen think of CSK as a government job, whether you perform or not, they know they'll get their salary anyway," Sehwag said on Cricbuzz live while analysing the CSK’s loss against KKR. Sehwag lashed on to CSK batsmen after the men in yellow failed to chase a paltry score of 168 runs against the Kolkata Knight Riders in their last game, even when the opening pair of Faf Du Plessis and Shane Watson was able to provide a brisk start. The team had reached 100 runs in the 11th over but lost the way in the middle overs as batsmen batting in the middle order such as Kedar Jadhav, MS Dhoni, and Ravindra Jadeja ate up too many balls and then got out without making up for it. Sehwag was specifically harsh on Jadhav and Jadeja and said "It should have been chased down. But the dot balls played by Kedar Jadhav and Ravindra Jadeja didn't help.” Chennai Super Kings have not looked like a side that has got into the finals of the IPL for the most number of times for any IPL team and the team has struggled to bat freely in any moment of the game. As a result, MS Dhoni finds his team in the bottom half of the table, losing four out of six matches they played this season.

BCCI Apex council to meet on Oct 17; England series a prime agenda for discussion

After successfully hosting the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League in the UAE under biosecure bubble mode, the apex council of the Board for Cricket Control in India is scheduled to meet virtually on October 17 to discuss various agendas of the board in the near future. Out of the various agenda likely to be discussed by the board, the upcoming series against England will be the most prominent agenda on the line of discussion. The decision to start the Indian domestic season and the schedule for the same will also find a proper place on the decision table for the BCCI apex council. The BCCI president Sourav Ganguly has expressed interest to host the England team on Indian soil although the coronavirus situation in the country is far from stable. The option of hosting Englishmen in the United Arab Emirates is also on the table, but BCCI would like to wait a lot more before giving up on efforts to ensure a home series against England. Reportedly, the board is planning to zero in on Mumbai to create a biosecure bubble for both England and Australia team in case they decide to host the series in India as the city house three different stadiums such as Wandkhede, Cricket Club of India and DY Patil Stadium. The IPL 2020 has been going in the UAE with almost no major logistical difficulties and the BCCI should have no problem in hosting the series in the Emirates should they decided to not take a chance with the coronavirus crisis in India

IPL 2020 | KKR vs KXIP: Match Preview, Predicted XI & Dream 11 Fantasy Picks

We are nearing the middle of the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League with the tournament entering the second weekend of doubleheaders that will see all the eight teams in action establish their positioning on the [points table. Teams sitting at the top would look to strengthen their rank by continuing on their winning ways while themes that are struggling at the bottom half of the table will have a chance to start fresh and reboot their chances. In the first match of the doubleheader on Saturday, October 10, the Kings XI Punjab will have to challenge the Kolkata Knight Riders who have shown promises of coming back to their own after a lot of changes that were in the team order in the last game against the Chennai Super Kings. The KKR made various amendments that were plaguing the team both in batting and bowling. The experimentation of opening with Sunil Narine was stopped and Rahul Tripathi, who was rife to bat in the top order was assigned the duty of doing so However, there were few surprise calls as Narine walked out to bat ahead of Eoin Morgan and Andre Russell but that looked more of a tactical move to take on the CSK’s spinner than a strategic move to slot Narine at the number 4 position. Anyway, all’s well that ends well as the KKR bowlers squeezed Chennai's batsmen to snatch a victory that looked beyond their grasp. Agin, captain Dinesh Karthik made a brilliant tactical move of not introducing Narine in the first 10 overs and held him back for the latter half, knowing the vulnerabilities of batsmen such as MS Dhoni and Kedar Jadhav who were looking rusty against Narine who obviously has some tricks up his sleeve. On the other hand, the journey of the Kings XI Punjab has become bad to worse after the team has now received hammering in two back to back encounters. In the first instance, it was the bowlers who were put to the sword by the CSK’s opening duo of Shane Watson and Faf Du Plessis while the batsmen’s chance of facing annihilation came in the last game against the Sunrisers Hyderabad. Punjab’s having a free-fall after making an impressive start into the tournament, challenging the Delhi Capitals which now sits comfortably at the number 2 on the points table. The opening pair of KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal was the best batsmen for sometime in this season and both had compiled one century each this season while the likes of Mohammed Shami and Sheldon Cottrell were looking menacing with the ball to take on any opponent. Somewhere, the team has lost the steam, and with that also a bit of self-esteem to win the game from precarious situations. Now, as the team has got into the habit of losing the game, the role of coach Anil Kumble has become increasingly critical to re-energize the group and inspire the team to bury what happened in the last few games and start afresh. Also, he needs to talk to KL Rahul, the batsman as a lot is riding on his batting as well as his captaincy. He does not seem to be fussed about the mediocre strike rate he is batting with, but as the pressure mounts with every losing game, KL Rahul may well lose his touch and that will be a game over for the Kings XI Punjab. The team is full of talents and match winners but they are not playing well as a unit and hence the role of leadership including Anil Kumble is paramount if KXIP has to turn things around in this season. Kings XI Punjab vs Kolkata Knight Riders: Match Details Match number- 24 Date: October 10, 2020 at 3:30 PM IST, 10:00 AM GMT, 2:00 PM Local Venue: Abu Dhabi Pitch and weather A fresh pitch will be used for the game between the KKR and the KXIP and the fact that the due will not be a factor that can influence the decision of captains after the toss, teams are likely to opt to bat first. The new pitch will bring the balls on to the bat and the stroke playing will be easy and also the overhead conditions given this will be a day game will also factor in the captain's call to bat first. The weather can be challenging for the team on the field but a delayed IPL means they will not see the worst of the UAE’s weather while fielding. Team News Kolkata Knight Riders KKR pacer Ali Khan who would have become the first player from the United States to play in the IPL has suffered an injury setback. There are conflicting reports on his availability for the remainder of this season but that is unlikely to do any damage to KKR’s chances in the IPL 2020, at least in the short run. Dinesh Karthik is more than likely to field an unchanged XI after having such a successful night against the Chennai Super Kings. Rahul Tripathi may have sealed an opening spot for himself while Sunil Narine is likely to remain as a floater in the batting line up who will be used as part of horses for courses to take on the spinners. Expected XI Shubman Gill, Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Dinesh Karthik (captain & wk), Eoin Morgan, Pat Cummins, Varun Chakravarthy, Kamlesh Nagarkoti, Shivam Mavi, Kings XI Punjab Kings XI team management has received a lot of flack for bringing too many changes in too few matches this season and it looks probable that the trend will continue. The team was looking to bring Chris Gayle in the last game against the Sunrisers but an upset stomach ruled him out and the big man from Jamaica will be itching to get a feel of the IPL 2020 with a big inning against one of the former teams in the IPL. If Gayle is included, it would be curtains for Gleen Maxwell who really has looked out of sorts even when he was coming into this tournament in a rich vein of form in England. Mujeeb Ur Rahman is likely to retain his place in the XI and so as Prabhsimran Singh, the wicketkeeper-batsman from Punjab who was assigned the task to bring stability at number 3 position after opening pair of Rahul and Agarwal. Gayle’s inclusion will push him to number four with Nicholas Pooran, Mandeep Singh to take on the bowlers around him. Expected XI KL Rahul (Captain), Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Prabhsimran Singh (wk), Mandeep Singh, Nicholas Pooran, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammed Shami, Sheldon Cottrell Kings XI Punjab vs Kolkata Knight Riders: Dream 11 team and suggestions KL Rahul, Nicholas Pooran, Eoin Morgan, Rahul Tripathi, Shubman Gill, Mayank Agarwal, Andre Russell, Shivam Mavi, Mohammed Shami, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Arsh Deep Singh Captain: KL Rahul Vice-captain: Eoin Morgan