THE EDGE: The Edge previews Friday’s IPL opener between Chennai Super Kings v Royal Challengers Bangalore with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
Chennai Super Kings v Royal Challengers Bangalore
MATCH OVERVIEW:
It’s that time of the year again! Cricket meets Bollywood for the biggest cricket spectacle of the year on Betdaq Betting Exchange – it’s Indian Premier League time! We kick the tournament off on Friday with the reigning Champions Chennai Super Kings taking on Royal Challengers Bangalore. MS Dhoni will again lead CSK into battle having not played cricket since lifting last year’s IPL trophy. That won’t matter for the millions of Indian fans – he is still star of the show! The biggest news from CSK is that they released England Test captain Ben Stokes; he suffers from having a high profile that demands a big salary but his performance level wasn’t good enough to justify the money.
CSK have added Ravindra Ashwin which is a great signing given we will we spin in Chennai. CSK have actually went big on spin with their squad this time around; they start with back-to-back home games too so they’ll be aiming for a fast start! RCB missed the playoffs last season; they usually get there but fluff their lines in the playoffs. They suffer from lack of star quality bowling; their owners have always went for star name batters in general. They also suffer from playing their home games at one of the highest scoring grounds in India so that does turn their games into a bit of a lottery – once the dew hits the bowlers have little chance and we see plenty of sixes. Once again they have an excellent batting line-up – Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Virat Kohli and Dinesh Karthik lead the way.
They do lack a spinner for the middle overs to control the game, and that’s going to hurt them. On tricky pitches sides might get away with things, and then in Bangalore if they get a fast start you might see the middle overs smashed to all parts. They haven’t beaten CSK in Chennai since 2008, so they face a very tough start. Despite RCB not having major success in the IPL, they are one of the biggest sides in terms of following so we do have a huge game to start the tournament. Two months of carnage awaits.
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
It will be very interesting to see how the wicket plays in Chennai. As I said above, Dhoni and Stephen Fleming have built a squad with plenty of spinners that can bat too. They will be spin heavy, and they’ll want a spinning track too. Usually you would say the best time to bat here is at the start of the season because we can get some very low scoring games. I think whatever way the wicket is playing it will be an edge to bat first – it’s usually wise to bat first here anyway and I think if you win the toss the decision is a no brainer unless we get very heavy dew. That’s generally the only positive to chasing here; if there’s no dew you really don’t want to be chasing.
RECOMMENDED BET:
It’s no surprise to see Chennai Super Kings as the favourites at 1.79 given their record at home against Royal Challengers Bangalore, and you have to say the RCB spinners look light too. I’m keen to pick stakes low towards the start of the tournament – we always have plenty of changes during the off season in the IPL. Not only do I worry about the RCB spin bowlers, they death bowling looks there for the taking too – that could be a huge factor here where sides tend to build a platform and aim to go big late. I know CSK have an excellent record against RCB, but I’m happy to have a small bet on the side who bats first here. I just feel conditions will have a massive role here; I am worried about the RCB bowling but if they bat first with their star batters they can put CSK under pressure.
The Edge Says:
One point win The Side Who Bats First at 1.8 (CSK) or 2.2 (RCB) with Betdaq Exchange
View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/CskRcb
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
I mentioned above how important I feel batting first will be, and I feel that will be a key trading edge. I would wait and see what conditions are like first though – like I said CSK have gone spin heavy this season and they might request a slow and low track from the start of the tournament. If that was the case it might pay to wait until the innings break to back the side defending a good score rather than risk a low score batting first. Don’t forget to check for signs of dew here too; you’ll see players using cloths a lot if that’s the case – dew here is usually a nightmare for the bowlers.
