NRW vs DB Match Preview
The Northern Warriors are the most successful franchise in the contest, having lifted the trophy twice so far.
The team will be once again led by Rovman Powell. Powell had an excellent outing the last season, as he finished as the top scorer for his team with 305 runs. He was supported well by Moeen Ali and Kennar Lewis. However, Moeen Ali will be missing this season, along with Imran Tahir, who was the top wicket-taker for the franchise the last season.
In the bowling department, Rayad Emrit led the pace attack in the last season, picked up 7 wickets, and will once again be the mainstay of the Warriors’ bowling attack. The inclusion of players like Wayne Parnell, Wanindu Hasaranga, Reece Topley, and Dushmantha Chameera will give a big boost to the Warriors’ all-round capabilities.
The Delhi Bulls have retained most of its top performers from the last season. Rahmanullah Gurbaz was the top-scorer from the team, scoring 343 runs. Dominic Drakes too had an excellent season as he picked up 19 wickets. Dwayne Bravo will once again lead the side. Romario Shepherd, who contributed well with both, the bat and the ball, as well as players like Ravi Rampaul and Eoin Morgan are missing this time.
The team still has plenty of firepower in the form of Tim David, Rilee Rossouw, and Will Jacks.
Weather Report
The weather is expected to be clear and humid, with temperatures hovering in the late 20s.
Pitch Report
The pitch at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium is flat with very little grass on it. The flat pitch offers even and consistent bounce, making it a great pitch to bat on. The quicker bowlers will have a difficult task at hand as there is hardly any movement for them. The spinners might come into play at a later stage in the game. The average first innings score here is around 110.
Notable stats
Rovman Powell’s Consistent Performance in the Shortest Format
Rovman Powell has been pretty consistent with the bat in the shortest format of the game. In the last IPL, he scored 250 runs at an average of 25, with an excellent strike rate of close to 150.
Wanindu Hasaranga's Excellent Bowling
Hasaranga was the top wicket-taker in the last season of the Abu Dhabi T10 League, taking 21 wickets. In T20s, Hasaranga has scalped 173 wickets from 123 matches, at an average of less than 15.
Team News
Since this is the first match of the season for both teams, all the players should be available for both squads.
NRW vs DB Probable 11
NRW Playing 11
- Rovman Powell (C)
- Kennar Lewis (Wk)
- Sherfane Rutherford
- Wayne Parnell
- Wanindu Hasaranga
- Isuru Udana
- Rayad Emrit
- Chris Green
- Liam Dawson
- Gus Atkinson
- Junaid Siddique
DB Playing 11
- Dwayne Bravo (C)
- Rilee Rossouw
- Najibullah Zadran
- Keemo Paul
- Tim David
- Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Wk)
- Fazalhaq Farooqi
- Dominic Drakes
- Harbhajan Singh
- Shiraz Ahmed
- Richard Gleeson
Dream11 Prediction
We are backing the Delhi Bulls to win this contest. The team has plenty of T20 specialists within the squad. The likes of Rilee Rossouw and Tim David are explosive with their batting, while the presence of veterans like Dwayne Bravo and Harbhajan Singh provides the right mix of experience.
Top Picks
Dwayne Bravo: Bravo needs no introduction. The West Indian all-rounder has been an indispensable part of the Chennai Super Kings in the past and his contributions with the bat and the ball are well-known. He has scored close to 7000 runs in the T20 format and has taken more than 600 wickets.
Rilee Rossouw: Rossouw has been a specialist batsman for T20s for New Zealand. This year, he has scored 372 runs in 10 innings, which include 2 centuries and a half-century. He has an average of 46.5, and a strike rate of 176.
Najibullah Zadran: Known for his hard-hitting abilities, Zadran has been a good finisher for Afghanistan. In 2022 he scored 358 runs in 17 innings at a strike rate of close to 145. At the same time, he has also picked up 18 wickets.
NRW vs DB Dream11 Team 1
Keeper: K Lewis, R Gurbaz
Batters: R Rossouw, A Lyth, R Powell, T David
All-rounders: I Udana, W Hasaranga (C)
Bowlers: D Bravo (VC), R Emrit, D Chameera
