THE EDGE: The Edge previews the IPL clash between Chennai Super Kings v Royal Challengers Bengaluru with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
Chennai Super Kings v Royal Challengers Bengaluru
MATCH OVERVIEW:
We have a blockbuster clash at the IPL on BETDAQ Betting Exchange on Friday as Chennai Super Kings take on Royal Challengers Bengaluru! These are two of the top supported franchises in IPL cricket, and with MS Dhoni v Virat Kohli the narrative there’s no doubt we’re going to have a packed house here. Both sides started their tournament with a win last weekend; obviously you expect CSK to be involved at the business end of the tournament given their history, but RCB are still waiting to be crowned Champions after all these years!
RCB have always focused on having star batters in their line-up; they have had some of the biggest names in cricket, but their record at home was always poor given their bowling line-up was poor. In recent years, they have changed tactics in the auction and it’ll be interesting to see if those tactics paid off – it might take a few years, but they have a better chance of winning with these new tactics compared to blowing the budget on two to three players. CSK are jam packed with spinners as you would expect with their home ground, and you’d have to expect a trial by spin here for RCB having seen the first game.
While the CSK bowling is excellent in their own conditions, there are flaws in their batting line-up. That’s where RCB can target – the CSK middle order really went over quickly in the first game despite them getting over the line. What a fascinating game ahead between two massive franchises!
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
Mumbai Indians could only manage 155/9 here in the opening game and although CSK chased with balls to spare, the game went to the last over and they did lose six wickets. I would suggest it’ll be reasonably tough to score again here; it’s actually tricky to know what to do at the toss but you’d definitely lean towards bowling first. Given we’ve had some incredibly high scoring games, it’ll be interesting to see how the market rates a 165 score here which could easily be a tricky chase. The main thing to watch out for here is any dew, which can completely change scoring conditions.
RECOMMENDED BET:
CSK come into the game as favourites and that isn’t surprising given their home record. They started the tournament very well and their bowling line-up is just superb when they have their own conditions. RCB did very well against KKR though; they held KKR down to 174/8 in excellent batting conditions at Eden Gardens, then chased it with 22 balls to spare. Usually we see 200+ at Eden Gardens these days. I expect this one to be a little closer than the market expects, and I’m happy to have a small bet on RCB at 2.22.
The Edge Says:
One point win Royal Challengers Bengaluru to beat Chennai Super Kings at 2.22 with BETDAQ Betting Exchange
View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/CheRoy
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
While it’s paid to support the batting side in most IPL games this season given the excellent batting conditions and high scoring; it’s the opposite here. In Chennai you want to focus on finding trades on either bowling side; obviously you’d have to expect spin to be a massive factor unless there’s a dew which makes it hard to control the ball. I’d happily support both sides when bowling; I do feel it might offer a little edge to bowl first here but I’d expect it to be reasonably difficult to score in both innings compared to other venues this season.
