Okay so yesterday I was scrolling through some fantasy cricket groups, right? The MUL vs PES eliminator hype was real. Everyone screaming about winning big. Felt like it was worth a shot, so I sat down with my cold coffee and started digging. Felt like a mission.
The Starting Point: Feeling Totally Lost
First off, I gotta be honest. Just staring at the player lists for MUL and PES? Head was spinning. Names, stats, past scores… it’s a lot. All those fancy sites with their predictions? Yeah, I checked a bunch. They kept screaming “pick this all-rounder!” or “this bowler is must!” but man, it felt conflicting. Who to trust? Clicked on like twenty different tabs, felt more confused than when I started. Thought, “Screw this, need a simpler way.”
My Grinding Process: Stats and Gut Feeling
Decided to go old school. Made two columns on a notepad app: MUL Players and PES Players. Started looking at their last five matches. Not just big scores, you know? Looked for consistency. Like, who keeps scoring runs even if they aren’t hitting centuries every time? Who takes wickets regularly, even on bad days?
- For Batters: Focused hard on guys playing at the top. Figured they get more balls to score. Looked at strike rates too. That Rizwan dude for MUL? Everyone talks about him. Checked his scores. Good, solid. But that Saim Ayub kid for PES? Looked explosive sometimes. Risk vs reward, man.
- For Bowlers: Forget the hype, looked at economy rates. Some guys get smashed around even if they take wickets. Found Abbas Afridi for MUL popping up a lot in recent games – wicket-taker. For PUS, Mohammad Ali seemed steady, not leaking runs. Also peeked at any injuries popping up on the team news channels.
- All-Rounders: Total gold. Guys like Iftikhar Ahmed? Can smash a few late runs and bowl some sneaky overs. Looked for players guaranteed to bat AND bowl. Vital spots for points.
- Captain/Vice-Captain: This is where the big points live. Brain went crazy. Felt pulled between safe choices and risky ones. Started leaning towards bowlers or all-rounders for captaincy sometimes. More chances for those multiple points, you know?
Kept muttering “form over name, form over name” to myself. Ignored the big names if they were having a crap run. Hurt to leave a star out, but gotta think about points.
Putting It Together & The Tension
Finally assembled my Dream11 team. Felt okay. Captain on Abbas Afridi – felt risky but he’s been taking wickets. Vice on Rizwan – safer bet for runs. Loaded up on top-order batters from both sides. Packed the team with as many all-rounders as the budget allowed. Hit submit. Then waited. Like, forever. Actual match time was brutal. Every boundary against my bowler hurt. Every time my chosen batter got out cheap, felt like a punch.
The Final Verdict and What I Learned (Kind Of)
Match ends. Nervous as hell checking the app. My PES guys did more work, but honestly? The points came through pretty decent. Won a small pot, not massive, but felt damn good! That Abbas Afridi captain pick saved my butt. Learned some stuff the hard way though:
- Stats matter. Seriously. More than the flashy names.
- Captain/Vice picks are crucial. High risk, crazy high reward.
- Don’t overload on one team unless you really believe. Balance it.
- “Experts” are noisy. Trust your own homework.
- Sweating buckets during the match is part of the “fun”.
Would I do it again? Heck yeah. The grind is messy, the wait is killer, but landing a decent win because you picked well? Feels earned. Don’t expect magic, just keep looking at those numbers and trust your gut a bit. On to the next one!
