Match report
MI edge CSK in a 19-over chase
The desk's read on Tuesday's Wankhede fixture and what it means for the rest of the week.
How to play
How to play fantasy cricket, in plain language
A free beginner explainer: what a contest is, how the salary cap works, how the captain pick works, and how scoring actually works.
What a fantasy cricket contest is
The mechanic in two paragraphs.
A fantasy cricket contest is a game you play against other readers. Each reader picks a virtual team of 11 real cricket players from the squads that will play in an upcoming IPL fixture. The real players then play the real match; your virtual team's score is the sum of the points your 11 players earn on the field.
The contest ranks readers by their virtual team's points. The top finishers in paid contests win a share of the prize pool; practice contests pay in practice credits. The mechanic is the same; only the stakes differ.
The salary cap
Why you cannot pick all the best players.
Each player in an IPL squad is assigned a salary by the platform. Batters and all-rounders in form tend to cost more; bench players and overseas rookies tend to cost less. You have a fixed budget - usually 100 credits - and you must pick 11 players who fit under it.
The salary cap is what makes the contest interesting. The eleven best players on paper cost more than the cap; you have to choose which one or two you leave out, and that choice is what differentiates a strong team from a weak one.
The captain pick
The single most important decision in any contest.
One of your 11 players is your captain. The captain's on-field points are multiplied by 2. One is your vice-captain, multiplied by 1.5. The captain pick is the biggest single source of variance in any contest.
The captain pick is a two-part decision. First, who is most likely to top-score on this surface? Second, in a large contest, is that player heavily owned? A captain who is owned by 60% of the contest gives you no differential; a captain who is owned by 8% and who fits the surface gives you a swing.
How scoring actually works
The standard T20 reference, briefly.
A batter earns 1 point per run, 4 bonus points for a boundary and 6 for a six. Milestones add bonuses: +4 for a 30, +8 for a fifty, +16 for a hundred. A bowler earns 25 points per wicket, with bonuses for LBW or bowled dismissals. Fielding earns 8 points per catch and 12 for a stumping. The captain multiplier doubles everything.
Read the full points reference for the complete table, including economy bonuses and strike-rate bands.
A first contest, step by step
What to do in the first hour.
1
Sign up
Mobile number, OTP, name, email. Two minutes.
2
Pick a fixture
The fixture list shows the next games. Tap one to see the contests available for it.
3
Pick a contest
Practice contests are free. Paid contests have an entry fee. Start with practice.
4
Build your XI
Pick 11 players within the salary cap. Choose a captain and a vice-captain. Confirm at toss.
5
Submit and watch
Submit 30 minutes before the first ball. Watch the match. The platform scores in real time.
What this page covers, in long form
A second pass through the topic with extra context, examples and the small habits the desk uses on its own teams.
Insight 01
Surface over form
The single biggest input to any fantasy cricket decision is the playing surface, not the recent form table. A dry Chepauk turner rewards a different XI than a flat Chinnaswamy track, and a green Mohali morning changes the captain pick again. Reading the pitch report the night before the toss is the highest-use habit a fantasy reader can build.
Insight 02
Captain over eleven
The captain pick is worth more than the eleven. A captain who scores 40 with two boundaries earns 96 fantasy points before any milestone bonus; the same innings from a non-captain earns 48. The captain multiplier is where most of the season's variance is decided, and the captain pick should be made after reading the surface, not before.
Insight 03
Bankroll beats picks
The desk's strongest readers win not because of better captain picks but because of better bankroll habits. A fixed stake per contest, three small contests instead of one big one, and a hard stop after three straight losses are the boring habits that keep readers in the contest long enough to learn.
A note on ownership
Ownership percentage is the most under-used input on a fantasy desk. In a large contest, the captain should rarely be the most-picked player. A captain who is owned by 8% of the contest and who fits the surface gives you a swing; a captain who is owned by 60% gives you no differential. Track ownership through the season, not just at the start.
Five reads the desk returns to
Articles, columns and references the desk keeps open in a browser tab through the season.
Captain pick
Captain pick of the day
The 4-factor reasoning for tonight's captain pick: surface, form, match-up, role.
Pitch report
Chepauk reading: dry top, slow turn
What the surface looks like 90 minutes before toss, and the fantasy angle.
Team preview
Mumbai Indians: a rebuild on a flat deck
A new opening pair and a death-over reshuffle.
Three things to carry into the next page
A short reading-end summary for the desk's match-day readers.
1
The surface is the input
Read the pitch report before you read the line-up. The surface dictates the captain pool more reliably than the recent form table. A dry turner and a flat deck are different games; treat them as such.
2
The captain is the output
Pick the captain after the surface, form and match-up all point one way. If they do not point one way, pick the differential. The captain pick is the single biggest source of variance in any contest.
3
The bankroll is the discipline
Fixed stake per contest, three small contests instead of one big one, walk away after three losses. The boring habits are the ones that keep winners in the contest long enough to learn.
Editorial reminder
IPL Fantasy Score is an editorial publication. We do not run a paid fantasy platform; we publish coverage. The desk's habit is to describe the captain logic in plain language and let the reader decide. We do not promise winning teams. We publish reasoning.