Suggestions and Tips for Playing World Cup Fantasy Cricket

03 Mar 2016

An overview of Fantasy Cricket strategy especially for the ICC T20 World Cup Competitions

This summary is meant primarily for those who are new to Fantasy Cricket, but more experienced participants may find a note here or there of value as well.

MODIFICATIONS (MODS)

Unlike two-team series, managing your mods, which let you change players and captains, is crucial in tournament Fantasy Cricket. You can only set your team once per match day, regardless of the number of matches that day, based on *local time* for the tournament location. Use local fixture lists to determine this, not our Fantasy Cricket dates, since ours are based on GMT, so two matches on the same day may show up as on different days on our list.

To best use your mods, first see how many "match days" there are: count up how many different days will have matches, regardless of the number of matches per day. Subtract one from this number (because the first day's match(es) don't cost any mods), then divide the resulting number into the total number of mods allowed. That tells you the average number of mods you can use per match day.

You don't want to run out of mods early (which means you've chosen more players early, and so not the best ones available the whole tournament) nor do you want to have any mods left over at the end, as near as possible (which means you could have had more players). On the other hand, don't use the same number of mods slavishly every match day: use more when there are better players to pick, less when there are not.

Choosing captains is another critical use of mods. In the three WC competitions, changing a captain varies in mod cost, so pay attention to that cost.

Also, whenever you put a new player in for a new match day, in general replace the players that won't play again for the most days. That way, the players you don't change will play again sooner. Each time you reset your team for a new match day, be sure to look ahead at least a couple of match days to see which teams will be playing!


WHEN TO SET YOUR TEAM

Ideally you want to set your team each match day after the toss so you can know who will actually be the playing XIs. However, when there are two matches in the WC the second match will always be later, so there is no way to know who will be playing in that match when you have to set. Read the previews, check all the news you can find, and remember that everyone else will be in the same boat. And if you're going to be busy (or sleeping!) at the time of the toss, it's lots better to set early than to not set at all. In general, if a player is questionable for a match you can't wait for the toss of, e.g., because of a niggle, avoid that player unless you think he or she is going to make a big difference if they play.

Don't forget to get your modifications in as soon as the toss is over(or even before if you prefer). Do not wait till the last moment. Also keep in mind that the teams are locked at the scheduled start of play regardless of any delay in the actual start time of the match, be it due to rain, fog, or anything else.


WHERE TO SELECT PLAYERS

In the recently introduced player categories of our Fantasy Cricket (Bastmen, WK, Bowlers, and Mixed), you will benefit by choosing carefully whom you put in the Mixed slots as opposed to the restricted slots. When it's time to replace players, which you'll need to do every new match day, you have a lot more flexibility changing mixed players than resticted players. This will affect not only being able to choose the set of players you want, but also being able to make adjustments if the set of players you want costs too much and you have to manipulate your team to fit within the budget. Put players in the restricted positions who you think are less likely to need to be changed.

This becomes especially important when teams play that have many expensive players. There may be times when it's actually necessary to select a player you know will not play because they have a low cost (E or F, for example), so you can get all the other players you want most. Don't be afraid to do that, if it gives you the best team you can select. Only a few players will be outstanding in any match--give yourself the best chance to have them on your team.


HOW TO HAVE THE MOST FUN

The ultimate reason to play fantasy cricket is to have fun. And winning is probably the most fun of all. However, we can't all win every tournament, we can't always be in the top tier every time. You'll have good tournaments and bad ones, that happens to all of us. But one way you can have more fun even if you're not among the top teams in any given competition is to play with your family and friends who love cricket too. Create a "user competiton" (just click on "User comp. - create" on the right side of the home FC page) and have your family and friends join it. That way you can always see exactly where you stand compared to each other in the competition. There's lots of material for bragging rights and trash talk as you all participate in the fantasy cricket competition!

--Jerry