IPL 2022: Punjab Kings (PBKS) Dream11 Fantasy Cricket Cheatsheet, Strongest Playing XI, Squad Depth and Key Players
A look at the team combinations, depth chart, recent form, and the fantasy potential of key players from the Punjab Kings camp ahead of IPL 2022.
Coach: Anil Kumble
Captain: Mayank Agarwal
IPL 2021 Finish: Group Stage Exit (6th Place)
Punjab Kings (PBKS) Team Composition & Combinations for IPL 2022:
PBKS have announced Mayank Agarwal as their captain for this season and he will open the batting alongside the experienced Shikhar Dhawan. Johnny Bairstow, Livingstone, Shahrukh Khan and Raj Bawa will form the middle-order with Odean Smith and H Brar adding batting depth. Rabada will lead the bowling attack comprising of Odean Smith and Arshdeep Singh as the pacers and Rahul Chahar, H Brar and Livingstone as the spin options.
The local middle-order batting options
PBKS have a batting slot open in the middle-order which is likely to be filled by Raj Bawa, the talented U-19 all-rounder mainly due to the overload of right-handed batting options in their line-up. But if Bawa doesn’t impress, the team management might turn to the experienced Rishi Dhawan who has been good with the bat in the domestic circuit and also provides an additional bowling option or the talented Prabhsimran Singh who has been around the PBKS setup since 2018.
Where does Liam Livingstone bat?
Livingstone is a versatile batter and can play at almost all the batting positions. PBKS have three established players from No,1 to No.3, so they wouldn’t want to pack all their experience at the top meaning Livingstone is likely to bat at either the No.5 or the No.6 position and is more likely to play the role of a pace power-hitter down the order.
Harpreet Brar or Sandeep Sharma?
H Brar had a good season with PBKS last year and is likely to start in the eleven this season but considering the lack of new ball bowling options in the bowling unit and the presence of Livingstone who can fill up the role of the second spinner efficiently means that Brar could be dropped for Sandeep Sharma, a proven Powerplay bowling option.
Can Odean Smith justify his 6cr paycheck?
On paper, Odean Smith balances the lineup pretty well but neither his batting nor his bowling is of top quality currently to expect performances from him day in day out. Initially he’ll get a longer rope but if he fails to perform, PBKS might prefer Benny Howell a quality bowler than Odean and can bat as well.
Punjab Kings (PBKS) Fantasy Cheat Sheet for IPL 2022
STUD
Players who have proven themselves to be top-scoring fantasy players and are popular.
Shikhar Dhawan – He’s a consistent run-scorer in the IPL and has crossed the 500 run mark in all the past three seasons. With Mayank Agarwal complementing him at the other end both by hand and intent, Dhawan should enjoy another good season with the bat for his new franchise. Since 2018 IPL, he averages 46 Dream11 batting points and crosses the 50 point mark almost once every two games.
Mayank Agarwal – Ever since he moved to the opening position in 2020, Mayank Agarwal has been pretty consistent with the bat crossing the 400 run mark in both the 2020 and 2021 IPL seasons. The pairing of him with Dhawan will benefit him a lot considering Dhawan will keep out the left-arm spinners and the legspinners away from him. Since 2020 IPL, he averages a terrific 51 Dream11 batting points per game.
Johnny Bairstow – He has been in good form with the bat for the England test side recently and is a proven performer at the IPL level. The only catch is he’s likely to play at No.3 for PBKS which is a change from his usual opening position at the IPL level. While he has batted down the order in the past, his returns might get affected by the positional switch but he makes it up with his wicket-keeping points. Since 2018 IPL, he averages 51 Dream11 batting points and crosses the 50 point mark once every two games.
BANKERS
The players who provide good value for their credits and can be banked upon for consistent returns.
Liam Livingstone – As discussed in the team combinations section, his batting fantasy value will be determined by his batting position but he provides additional value with his bowling since he’s capable of switching between legspin and offspin depending on the match-ups on offer. He averages 38 and 27 Dream11 point with the bat and ball respectively since 2018 in all T20s.
Kagiso Rabada – Rabada would’ve easily found himself in the stud category if not for his average performances last season. He’s a genuine wicket-taker especially at the death and his recent form is good too. Since 2018 IPL, he averages 41 Dream11 bowling points and crosses the 50 point mark once every two games.
TRAP
The players who seem like good buys, but won’t score enough points to justify their credits or hype.
Shahrukh Khan – He has displayed some tremendous batting form in the recent domestic fixtures but his batting position and the nature of the role means he won’t be able to deliver consistent fantasy points.
Odean Smith – As discussed in the team combinations section, he might appear a good utility pick but his inexperience means he’s not a reliable fantasy pick. In all T20s since 2018, he averages 16 and 29 Dream11 points with both the bat and ball respectively.
Rahul Chahar – His struggles against the left-handers has held back his bowling in the past seasons. Other spin options in Livingstone and Brar doesn’t complement him much which means his struggles might continue unless he uses his googly against the lefties more judiciously than usual. Since 2018, he averages only 28 Dream11 bowling points per game in the IPL.
Harpreet Brar – As an economical fingerspinner who bats too low, he doesn’t offer much fantasy value except on decks where he gets some purchase off the wicket.
SLEEPER
The players who provide decent enough value but is undervalued or is just not a well-known player.
Arshdeep Singh – Death bowlers are always valuable from a fantasy perspective since wickets come cheap in that phase. Arshdeep Singh has been pretty successful for PBKS in that phase since 2020 and averages 35 Dream11 bowling points per game in the IPL since 2018.
FLEX
The players whose credit values are less but still provide some decent value thereby helping to balance out the lineup.
Raj Bawa – As discussed above in the team combinations section he’s a most likely to start in the eleven. A handy pick who wouldn’t be a burden on the purse.
Opponent Fantasy Value:
Every team is vulnerable to a certain batting type or a bowler type depending on their setup. For example, a batting unit full of right-handers will be vulnerable against left-arm spinners and wristspinners or a bowling attack void of any quality new-ball bowlers will leak runs in the Powerplay and allow the openers to score freely. These vulnerabilities of the team allows certain player types from opponent sides to perform freely against them which can be used to pick those player types from the opponent side in your fantasy team. As far as Punjab Kings are concerned, you can pick the player types listed below from the opponent side if those player types are available.
- Left-handed Spin Hitters
- Anchors who can smoke pace and are competent vs spin
- Pace power-hitters at death
- Quality wrist-spin