Welcome to our latest blog on the GameDay Squad Global Cricket Championship, where we bring you the highlights and standout performers from rounds 4 to 8. As the competition heats up, several players have already made their mark, delivering exceptional performances and racking up impressive GDS Fantasy Points. Let's dive into the squad of the week and top performers of the week, showcasing the best wicket-keepers, batsmen, all-rounders, and bowlers. You will also find a sneak preview on who we think might be good selections for round 9 to 11.
GDS Squad of the week for rounds 4-8
WKT - Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Afghanistan) -111 GDS Fantasy Points
WKT/BAT - David Miller (South Africa) -86 GDS Fantasy Points
WKT/BAT - Jos Buttler (England) - 85 GDS Fantasy Points
WKT/BAT - David Warner (Australia) - 80 GDS Fantasy Points
AR - Marcus Stoinis (Australia) - 163 GDS Fantasy Points
AR - Rashid Khan (Afghanistan) - 117 GDS Fantasy Points
AR - Gerhard Erasmus (Namibia) - 116 GDS Fantasy Points
AR - Logan van Beek (Netherlands) - 102 GDS Fantasy Points
BWL - Akeal Hosein (West Indies) -135 GDS Fantasy Points
BWL - Ottneil Baartman (South Africa) - 104 GDS Fantasy Points
BWL - Fazalhaq Farooqi (Afghanistan) - 100 GDS Fantasy Points
GDS Top 10 Wicket-Keepers
Rahmanullah Gurbaz - Afghanistan - 112.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Jos Buttler - England - 85.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Rishabh Pant - India - 75.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Litton Das - Bangladesh - 67.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Andries Gous - United States of America - 66.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Phil Salt - England - 57.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Shreyas Movva - Canada - 55.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Monank Patel - United States of America - 42.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Nicholas Pooran - West Indies - 42.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Pratik Athavale - Oman - 34.5 GDS Fantasy Points
GDS Top 10 Batsman
Aaron Jones - United States of America - 86.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Ibrahim Zadran - Afghanistan - 76.0 GDS Fantasy Points
David Warner - Australia - 70.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Towhid Hridoy - Bangladesh - 53.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Babar Azam - Pakistan - 46.5 GDS Fantasy Points
David Miller - South Africa - 46.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Navneet Dhaliwal - Canada - 44.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Rohit Paudel - Nepal - 44.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Rohit Sharma - India - 43.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Max O'Dowd - Netherlands - 43.0 GDS Fantasy Points
GDS Top 10 All-Rounders
Marcus Stoinis - Australia - 113.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Logan van Beek - Netherlands - 98.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Gerhard Erasmus - Namibia - 93.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Rashid Khan - Afghanistan - 87.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Mehran Khan - Oman - 75.7 GDS Fantasy Points
Hardik Pandya - India - 75.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Norman Vanua - Papua New Guinea - 71.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Nicholas Kirton - Canada - 70.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Assad Vala - Papua New Guinea - 65.5 GDS Fantasy Points
David Wiese - Namibia - 64.0 GDS Fantasy Points
GDS Top 10 Bowlers
Fazalhaq Farooqi - Afghanistan - 121.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Anrich Nortje - South Africa - 90.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Mustafizur Rahman - Bangladesh - 85.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Akeal Hosein - West Indies - 84.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Ottneil Baartman - South Africa - 83.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Jasprit Bumrah - India - 76.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Rishad Hossain - Bangladesh - 75.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Nosthush Kenjige - United States of America - 74.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Ruben Trumpelmann - Namibia - 66.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Matt Henry - New Zealand - 64.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Top Performers
Akeal Hosein - Bowler - West Indies
The West Indies showed why they should be considered as a contender for the T20 World Cup as they cruised past Uganda, winning by 134 runs. Akeal Hosein put in a career best bowling performance taking 5/11 from his four overs and this earnt him 135 GDS fantasy points. This might just be the best performance that we see with the ball at T20 CWC. To all those coaches that started Hosein in their starting XI for round 7, well done. Depending on the pitch and opposition, Hosein should be considered as a starting option anytime the West Indies play.
Marcus Stoinis - All-Rounder - Australia
Marcus Stoinis put in a fantastic performance against Oman. He scored 67 runs from 36 deliveries and took 3/19 off his three overs. This worked out to be a whopping 163 GDS fantasy points and this score is currently the best individual performance by any player in GDS. With Stoinis coming in at five in the Australian batting order and bowling three overs a match, he might just be one of the best all-rounders to hold a card of in GDS. With Mitchell Marsh not bowling for Australia at the moment, Stoinis is now ranked as my top Australian all-rounder and should be seriously considered anytime they play.
Rashid Khan - All-Rounder - Afghanistan
Rashid Khan showed us why he is one of the best exponents of the T20 format as he ripped through the New Zealand batting order, taking 4/17 from his four overs and scoring 117 GDS fantasy points. Afghanistan is one of the inform teams of the tournament and are now well placed to make it out of the first round of the group stages. With Afghanistan's next match against PNG, Khan looks to be a must start for round 12 and should be seriously considered anytime they play.
GDS Team to Beat - Round 9
Bangladesh vs South Africa
WKT - Litton Das (Bangladesh)
WKT/BAT - Heinrich Klaasen (South Africa)
WKT/BAT - Tristan Stubbs (South Africa)
WKT/BAT - Quinton de Kock (South Africa)
AR - Marco Jansen (South Africa)
AR - Aiden Markram (South Africa)
AR - Shakib Al Hasan (Bangladesh)
AR - Mahmudullah (Bangladesh)
BWL - Anrich Nortje (South Africa)
BWL - Mustafizur Rahman (Bangladesh)
BWL - Ottneil Baartman (South Africa)
Player in focus - Quinton de Kock
QDK has been in a form slump for a while now and he's due for a big innings very soon. I honestly don't think it will be this match and this is only because of the unpredictable drop in pitch at New York. Batsman have really struggled on this surface, but this will be South Africa's third match in New York. I believe he offers one of the highest ceilings at the WKT/BAT position, especially with him being the one behind the stumps for the South African pace bowlers.
GDS Team to Beat - Round 10
Canada vs Pakistan
Nepal vs Sri Lanka
Australia vs Namibia
WKT - Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan)
WKT/BAT - David Warner (Australia)
WKT/BAT - Travis Head (Australia)
WKT/BAT - Babar Azam (Pakistan)
AR - Marcus Stoinis (Australia)
AR - Wanindu Hasaranga (Sri Lanka)
AR - Gerhard Erasmus (Namibia)
AR - Glenn Maxwell (Australia)
BWL - Shaheen Shah Afridi (Pakistan)
BWL - Nuwan Thushara (Sri Lanka)
BWL - Haris Rauf (Pakistan)
Player in focus - Glenn Maxwell
The Big Show has got to be due soon with a big performance for GDS coaches. He's been in wretched run of form with the bat and has only had three innings when he has made it to 10+ runs in his last 11 matches. We all know how talented he can be, and this might be the match where he blasts 50+ runs off 20 odd deliveries. It's honestly a coin flip on who to start between Marsh and Maxwell. I've selected Maxwell as I think he is due, and Marsh still hasn't bowled in a match after returning from injury.
GDS Team to Beat - Round 11
United States of America vs India
West Indies vs New Zealand
WKT - Rishabh Pant (India)
WKT/BAT - Rohit Sharma (India)
WKT/BAT - Nicholas Pooran (West Indies)
WKT/BAT - Kane Williamson (New Zealand)
AR - Hardik Pandya (India)
AR - Andre Russell (West Indies)
AR - Mitchell Santner (New Zealand)
AR - Roston Chase (West Indies)
BWL - Jasprit Bumrah (India)
BWL - Arshdeep Singh (India)
BWL - Matt Henry (New Zealand)
Akeal Hosein is one of the hottest names in GDS after this performance against Uganda and now is a great opportunity to sell high in my opinion. Over his 52 T20Is, he has only taken 2+ wickets in eight matches and only 3+ wickets in two matches. I'm expecting New Zealand to be much better in their second match of the tournament and I don't think we will see Hosein have the same success he did against Uganda. I have the above three bowler suggestions all ranked ahead of Hosein for round 11.
