Venue: Dubai International Cricket Stadium, Dubai
Time: 7:30 PM IST
Average score at venue: 160
Win percentage while batting first: 38.78%
Pitch conditions:
- The pitch at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium remains favourable to batsmen, with teams batting second enjoying a great success rate at this venue. Out of the 9 matches played in Indian T20 League 2021 so far, 6 have been won by teams batting second and in the last 5 matches, teams chasing have emerged victorious on 4 occasions.
- With a wicket-share percentage of 66.85%, fast bowlers have enjoyed greater success and time at the Dubai, compared to the spin bowlers who have 33.15% of the wickets coming their way.
Weather prediction:
After a bright and sunny day in Dubai on Friday, the temperature will drop down to 32°C during the match hours in the evening. The humidity level will range around 60 to 70% with some wind blowing across the stadium as well.
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD:
Matches played: 26
Team Bangalore won: 15
Team Delhi won: 10
No result: 1
Last 5 matches:
Team Bangalore won: 1
Team Delhi won: 4
No result: –
Top 3 players from Team Bangalore: Glenn Maxwell, Devdutt Padikkal, Harshal Patel
Top 3 players from Team Delhi: Shreyas Iyer, Shikhar Dhawan, Akshar Patel
Top picks for H2H/WTA contest (top 5 players each):
Top 5 players from Team Bangalore: Glenn Maxwell, Devdutt Padikkal, Harshal Patel, Daniel Christian, AB de Villiers
Top 5 players from Team Delhi: Shreyas Iyer, Shikhar Dhawan, Akshar Patel, Shimron Hetmyer, Prithvi Shaw
Q&A:
Should I pick more bowlers, batsmen or all-rounders?
In what will be the final league round match of Indian T20 League 2021, the two teams who also are challengers for the Indian T20 Leaguetitle this year, Team Delhi and Team Bangalore will be facing off against each other at Dubai International Cricket Stadium — a venue which will host some of the knockout round matches including the grand final. With the possibility of these two teams meeting once again in the final not ruled out, this match promises to be a thrilling contest between two top teams. Adding more to the batting strength in what will turn out to be a contest between two heavyweights in this Indian T20 League will be the right approach to this contest, which can serve as a prelude to what lies ahead in the tournament. Needless to say, both Team Delhi and Team Bangalore will want to bring out their best and the team that emerges victorious will certainly enjoy having an edge going further into the tournament.
From which team should I pick more players in my XI? Which team is stronger?
It is indeed a difficult situation to pick players from the two teams who have some of the best players in the tournament. Team Delhi have plenty of batsmen in form such as Shikhar Dhawan, Shreyas Iyer, Shimron Hetmyer, Rishabh Pant and even Prithvi Shaw to name a few. On the other hand, Team Bangalore are looking extremely dangerous with their Australian all-rounder in Glenn Maxwell firing on all cylinders, whereas their young gun in Devdutt Padikkal has also been among the highest run-getters. With his captaincy stint coming to an end, Team Bangalore captain Virat Kohlii is presented with an opportunity to lead from the front and with the bat. For starters, selecting more players from Team Delhi could be the right way to go about in this contest.
MORE INFORMATION: If Team Chennai do not record a big victory against Punjab Kings in their last league round match, Team Delhi are all set to finish at the top of the Indian T20 League 2021 points table provided they also record a victory against Team Bangalore and continue their domination against Kohlii’s team. Team Delhi have won 4 out of the last 5 matches these two teams have played in the Indian T20 League in recent times, which is completely against their overall record. In their bilateral history, Team Bangalore have beaten Team Delhi in 15 matches while losing only 10. Nevertheless, both the teams will want to put their best foot forward and make a strong statement ahead of the business end of Indian T20 League 2021.
Players’ form: Team Delhi will rely on the form of their key batsmen in Iyer, Dhawan, Shaw, Pant and the others in Akshar Patel as well as Shimron Hetmyer who can play the roles of finishers. In the Team Bangalore camp, there will be some concern regarding the form of their South African veteran AB de Villiers, whose form seems to have taken a backseat given that Glenn Maxwell has been leading their run scoring chart in Indian T20 League 2021. The same can be said for Team Bangalore captain Kohlii, who has had mixed returns but his opening partner Padikkal has picked up well with the Indian T20 League 2021 playoffs stage approaching fast.
Changes in squad (if any): NO
LIKELY XIs:
Team Delhi: Prithvi Shaw, Shikhar Dhawan, Ripal Patel, Shreyas Iyer, Rishabh Pant (c&wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Akshar Patel, R Ashwin, Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Nortje, Avesh Khan
Team Bangalore: V Kohlii (c), Devdutt Padikkal, Srikar Bharat (wk), Glenn Maxwell, AB de Villiers, Dan Christian, Shahbaz Ahmed, George Garton, Harshal Patel, Yuzvendra Chahal, Mohammed Siraj
FANTASY XI: Shikhar Dhawan, Devdutt Padikkal, Glenn Maxwell (c), Shreyas Iyer (vc), Rishabh Pant (wk), AB de Villiers, Daniel Christian, Akshar Patel, Shimron Hetmyer, Avesh Khan, Harshal Patel.
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Team Bangalore face uphill task against rampant Team Delhi
V Kohlii’s Team Bangalore will face an uphill task against Rishabh Pant’s Team Delhi in what will be the final match of Indian T20 League 2021 league stage, one that will also be played along at the same time when Team Mumbai will take on Team Hyderabad in the penultimate game of the first round.
With Team Bangalore and Team Delhi having already qualified for the Indian T20 League 2021 playoffs, the excitement around the fact that teams will be competing for a bigger prize will certainly be taking a backseat.
But what will be on offer is a contest between two extremely competitive and dangerous teams in Indian T20 League 2021 who have been very successful in their respective campaigns, with Team Delhi certainly enjoying far more success and standing in the tournament for the sheer amount of hard work they have put in to reap rich results.
There is certainly no doubt that Team Delhi have been the best team in Indian T20 League 2021 so far — something that can be seen in the points table. In 13 matches played so far, no other team than Team Delhi have won 10 matches, no other team has reached 20 points and no other team has looked as robust and challenging as DC. Needless to say, Team Delhi are the team to beat before other teams such as Team Chennai and Team Bangalore are mentioned.
On the other hand, Team Bangalore will be pleased with the fact that they have made it to the final four for the second year on the trot.
After making a splendid start to the Indian T20 League season this year, Team Bangalore had lost the sheen in the middle as they went through some ordinary run of results on the field which put their position in jeopardy as far as qualifying for the knockout round was concerned.
Team Bangalore did well to bounce back and record a string of some impressive victories which put them into the final four, with the team recording a better result than last time around.
In Indian T20 League 2020, Team Bangalore had been the fourth team to have qualified for the knockouts, but this year, even though they could not push on further for a second spot finish owing to a four-run defeat to Team Hyderabad, they will be placed third irrespective of what happens in the remaining matches.
