Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will resume their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 campaign on September 20 by wearing a blue jersey against the Kolkata Knights Riders in Abu Dhabi.RCB had announced in May that they would be sporting blue jerseys to honour the frontline workers fighting against the Covid-19 pandemic in India. However, before their next fixture, the IPL was suspended due to positive Covid-19 cases in the bio-bubbles of franchises in Delhi and Ahmedabad.The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) shifted IPL out of India and said that the remaining season will take place in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) from September 19 to October 15."RCB to wear Blue Jersey v KKR on 20th. We at RCB are honoured to sport the Blue kit, which resembles the colour of the PPE kits of the frontline warriors, to pay tribute to their invaluable service while leading the fight against the Covid pandemic," RCB said in a statement.RCB to wear Blue Jersey v KKR on 20thWe at RCB are honoured to sport the Blue kit, that resembles the colour of the PPE kits of the frontline warriors, to pay tribute to their invaluable service while leading the fight against the Covid pandemic.#PlayBold #1Team1Fight pic.twitter.com/r0NPBdybAS— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) September 14, 2021Instead of the flagship "Go Green" campaign jersey, RCB will wear a blue this year. The blue jerseys will also have important health messages engraved on it.Virat Kohli and Mohamed Siraj arrived in the UAE on a chartered flight from Manchester were India played a test series against England. The fifth and last test of the aforementioned series has been canceled after the Covid-19 scare in the Indian camp.The likes of AB de Villiers and Glenn Maxwell also arrived in the UAE earlier this month to prepare for the rest of the season.Mike Hesson, who has doubled as coach after Simon Katich's withdrawal, has been overseeing the training with the available RCB players in the UAE.RCB will be looking to reach the play-offs for the second successive IPL season. Virat Kohli's men are currently in third place with 5 wins from 7 matches, tied on 10 points with the Chennai Super Kings, who are in second place. Delhi Capitals leads the points table with 12 points from 8 games.Also Read- T20 World Cup: Shikhar Dhawan, Yuzvendra Chahal among big names missing from India's 15-man squad
The two new IPL teams will be auctioned on October 17. The league's ninth and tenth teams will be decided just two days after the IPL final in Dubai and the day the T20 World Cup begins.The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) recently announced a tender for owning and operating two new Indian Premier League franchises.“The Governing Council of the IPL invites bids to acquire the right to own and operate 1 (one) of the 2 (two) new teams proposed to be introduced to take part in the Indian Premier League from the IPL 2022 season, through a tender process,” the BCCI said in a statement.Also Read- IPL 2021: RCB to wear blue jersey against KKR on September 20 to honour frontline workersThe deadline for the purchase of tender document is October 5.Among the venues where the teams could be based include Ahmedabad, Lucknow and Pune. The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Ekana Stadium in Lucknow the larger-capacity could be an option for franchises. This effectively indicates that the IPL will be a 10-team tournament starting in the 2022 season.Also Read- T20 World Cup: Shikhar Dhawan, Yuzvendra Chahal among big names missing from India's 15-man squad
Delhi Capitals will face Kolkata Knight Riders in the second qualifier of the IPL 2021 on Wednesday. Delhi Capitals lost Qualifier 1 by a close fight against Chennai Super Kings for 4 wickets and now its time for them to seize another opportunity they are receiving since they finished at the top of the table. They were very competitive throughout Qualifier 1 and couldn't able to hold their nerves against one of the greatest finishers MS Dhoni. Will they reach the final for the second time in a row we need to wait and watch. On the other hand, Kolkata Knight Riders stormed into second qualifier by defeating RCB in the Eliminator by 4 wickets in the final over of the match. Special thanks to Sunil Narine who picked up 4 wickets initially and later played a handy cameo with the bat. Their spinners are doing a commendable job in this tournament and hardly went for runs. Despite his poor run of form with the bat, Eoin Morgan led the team really well.Match Details: Delhi Capitals vs Kolkata Knight Riders, Qualifier 2Venue: Sharjah Cricket Stadium, SharjahDate &Time: October 13th at 7:30 PM IST, and at 6:00 PM local timeLive Streaming: Star Sports Network and Disney+HotstarPitch Report:The ball is gripping and facing spinners will be a huge challenge for the batters on this surface. The wicket will slow down as the game progresses, even the score of 150 is a defendable score. Batting first is still a good option.Probable Playing XIs DC vs KKR:Delhi CapitalsPrithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (c & wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Axar Patel, Tom Curran, Ravichandran Ashwin, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Avesh KhanKolkata Knight RidersShubman Gill, Venkatesh Iyer, Rahul Tripathi, Nitish Rana, Dinesh Karthik (wk), Eoin Morgan (c), Shakib Al Hasan, Sunil Narine, Shivam Mavi, Lockie Ferguson, Varun ChakravarthyDC vs KKR Top Picks for DC vs KKR Dream11 Match:Top Picks – BattersPrithvi Shaw played some delightful shots in the last match against Chennai Super Kings and bought up his 4th half-century in this IPL. Overall, in 14 matches, he has notched 461 runs at an average of 32.92 with the highest score of 82. Shubman Gill looked good in the last game against RCB, he was undone by a slower one from Harshal Patel when he was on 29 runs. He is the 2nd leading run-scorer for Knight Riders in this edition with 381 runs in 15 matches.Top Picks – All-RoundersThe surface here at Sharjah will be ideal for Axar Patel as the ball is getting plenty of turn. He has scalped 15 wickets in 11 matches in this edition at an economy of 6.52 and even scored 36 runs with the bat. Sunil Narine deserved the player of the match award for his impeccable all-round performances against RCB in the Eliminator. He picked up 4 crucial wickets at an economy of 5.25 and later played a quickfire 26 runs from 15 balls.Top Picks – BowlersAnrich Nortje has been lethal with the ball and has troubled the batters in this IPL. In 7 matches so far, he has scalped 10 wickets at an impressive economy of 5.92. Varun Chakravarthy has been pretty consistent throughout this IPL. He hardly bowls a bad delivery and is one of the most trusted bowlers by skipper Eoin Morgan. He anticipates the batter’s move well which makes him one of the successful bowlers in this format of the game.Top Picks – WicketkeepersRishabh Pant is the first choice wicketkeeping option for your fantasy teams. His knock of 51* runs from 35 balls provided Delhi Capitals to put up a competitive score against CSK in Qualifier 1. Overall, in this edition, he has scored 413 runs at an average of 37.54.Suggested Playing XI No.1 for DC vs KKR Dream11 Fantasy Cricket:Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Prithvi Shaw (c), Shubman Gill, Shakib Al Hasan, Sunil Narine (vc), Axar Patel, Venkatesh Iyer, Ravichandran Ashwin, Lockie Ferguson, Varun ChakravarthySuggested Playing XI No.2 for DC vs KKR Dream11 Fantasy Cricket:Rishabh Pant (vc), Shikhar Dhawan, Shimron Hetmyer, Nitish Rana, Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill, Sunil Narine, Venkatesh Iyer (c), Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Varun ChakravarthyDC vs KKR Must Picks for Dream11 Fantasy Cricket:Player Statistics Dream11 Points Sunil Narine 14 wickets 60 runs 593 Varun Chakravarthy 16 wickets 584 Rishabh Pant 413 runs 724 Prithvi Shaw 461 runs 695 Shubhman Gill 381 runs 588 DC vs KKR Risky Captaincy Choices:Shikhar Dhawan hasn’t fired in the 2nd leg of the IPL to the expectations. Considering his current form, he is a risky captaincy pick for your fantasy teams. Even on the spin-friendly conditions, Lockie Ferguson picked up 2 wickets against RCB in the Eliminator. You can take a risk and pick him as your fantasy team skipper.Player you should avoid:Eoin Morgan has scored only 129 runs in 14 innings so far in this IPL at an average of 12.9. Hence, it’s better to avoid him while making your fantasy teams.Also Read- T20 World Cup 2021 Schedule, All Teams, Host, Time Table, Venue
