Welcome to our latest blog on the GameDay Squad Global Cricket Championship, where we bring you the highlights and standout performers from rounds 9 to 11. 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 12 to 14.
GDS Squad of the week for rounds 9-11
WKT - Mohammad Rizwan (Pakistan) -81 GDS Fantasy Points
WKT/BAT Sherfane Rutherford - (West Indies) - 90 GDS Fantasy Points
WKT/BAT - Aaron Johnson (Canada) -72 GDS Fantasy Points
WKT/BAT - Suryakumar Yadav (India) - 64 GDS Fantasy Points
AR - Hardik Pandya (India) - 82 GDS Fantasy Points
AR - Andre Russell (West Indies) - 65 GDS Fantasy Points
AR - Glenn Phillips (New Zealand) - 53 GDS Fantasy Points
AR - Marcus Stoinis (Australia) - 52 GDS Fantasy Points
BWL - Alzarri Joseph (West Indies) - 108 GDS Fantasy Points
BWL - Adam Zampa (Australia) -105 GDS Fantasy Points
BWL - Arshdeep Singh (India) - 104 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 - 65.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Phil Salt - England - 57.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Mohammad Rizwan - Pakistan - 48.7 GDS Fantasy Points
Andries Gous - United States of America - 47.3 GDS Fantasy Points
Shreyas Movva - Canada - 42.7 GDS Fantasy Points
Monank Patel - United States of America - 42.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Litton Das - Bangladesh - 38.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Nicholas Pooran - West Indies - 37.3 GDS Fantasy Points
GDS Top 10 Batsman
Ibrahim Zadran - Afghanistan - 76.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Aaron Jones - United States of America - 61.7 GDS Fantasy Points
David Warner - Australia - 53.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Towhid Hridoy - Bangladesh - 50.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Babar Azam - Pakistan - 44.3 GDS Fantasy Points
David Miller - South Africa - 44.3 GDS Fantasy Points
Aaron Johnson - Canada - 44.3 GDS Fantasy Points
Rohit Paudel - Nepal - 44.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Max O'Dowd - Netherlands - 43.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Michael Jones - Scotland - 41.5 GDS Fantasy Points
GDS Top 10 All-Rounders
Logan van Beek - Netherlands - 98.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Marcus Stoinis - Australia - 93.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Rashid Khan - Afghanistan - 87.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Gerhard Erasmus - Namibia - 79.3 GDS Fantasy Points
Hardik Pandya - India - 77.7 GDS Fantasy Points
Mehran Khan - Oman - 75.7 GDS Fantasy Points
Norman Vanua - Papua New Guinea - 71.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Assad Vala - Papua New Guinea - 65.5 GDS Fantasy Points
Andre Russell - West Indies - 64.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Brandon McMullen - Scotland - 59.5 GDS Fantasy Points
GDS Top 10 Bowlers
Fazalhaq Farooqi - Afghanistan - 121.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Trent Boult - New Zealand - 79.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Anrich Nortje - South Africa - 77.7 GDS Fantasy Points
Alzarri Joseph - West Indies - 77.7 GDS Fantasy Points
Nosthush Kenjige - United States of America - 74.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Akeal Hosein - West Indies - 72.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Adam Zampa - Australia - 68.3 GDS Fantasy Points
Arshdeep Singh - India - 66.7 GDS Fantasy Points
Tanzim Hasan Sakib - Bangladesh - 65.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Matt Henry - New Zealand - 64.0 GDS Fantasy Points
Top Performers
Adam Zampa - Bowler - Australia
Adam Zampa was in superb form against Namibia and ended with figures of 4/12 off his four overs. He now has eight wickets for the tournament and hasn't taken any less than two wickets in a match. The Australian line-up seems to be very settled with the exception of one of their pacemen being rested each match. I believe Zampa will continue to keep bowling his full complement of overs and should be considered as a starting option anytime Australia plays.
Arshdeep Singh - Bowler - India
Arshdeep Singh put in his best bowling performance of the tournament against the USA and finished with 4/17 off his four overs. He has now taken seven wickets in the tournament but has only managed to make the GDS squad of the round once. In round 14 India will play Canada in Miami and I'm expecting this pitch not to assist the pace bowlers as much as the pitch in New York did. With the likes of Zampa, Bumrah, Cummins and Starc likely to play in the same round, there might not be room in GDS coaches' starting XIs for the inform Singh. I believe he is still a very good starting option but would likely be considered as a player of difference for round 14.
Alzarri Joseph - Bowler - West Indies
Alzarri Joseph helped the West Indies qualify for the second round of the T20 CWC as he finished with figures of 4/19 from his four overs against New Zealand. He now has eight wickets for the tournament and has taken multiple wickets in every match. With the West Indies playing on home pitches, Joseph is quickly becoming one of the most sought-after cards in GDS. With him in this form, he should be considered every time the West Indies play.
You may have noticed that there isn't a lot of variety in positions for the above top performers. Based on the low totals we have seen in this T20 CWC, you can understand why. If you are playing in either of the salary cap competitions, it may pay to play your higher rarity cards in either the bowler or all-rounder positions. The batsmen are just not having a great tournament from a GDS Fantasy perspective and only four batsmen are averaging more than 50 GDS Fantasy Points a match.
GDS Team to Beat - Round 12
Bangladesh vs Netherlands
England vs Oman
Afghanistan vs Papua New Guinea
WKT - Rahmanullah Gurbaz (Afghanistan)
WKT/BAT - Jos Buttler (England)
WKT/BAT - Phil Salt (England)
WKT/BAT - Ibrahim Zadran (Afghanistan)
AR - Logan van Beek (Netherlands)
AR - Rashid Khan (Afghanistan)
AR - Mehran Khan (Oman)
AR - Bas de Leede (Netherlands)
BWL - Fazalhaq Farooqi (Afghanistan)
BWL - Jofra Archer (England)
BWL - Tanzim Hasan Sakib (Bangladesh)
Player in focus - Rahmanullah Gurbaz
Rahmanullah Gurbaz has been in outstanding form with the bat. He scored 76 runs (112 GDS fantasy points) vs Uganda and 80 runs vs New Zealand (111 GDS fantasy points). Gurbaz has been part of the GDS squad of the round in both matches that he has played, and I wouldn't be surprised if we see him make it again this round. Gurbaz in his current form is a must start.
GDS Team to Beat - Round 13
United States of America vs Ireland
Nepal vs South Africa
New Zealand vs Uganda
WKT - Quinton de Kock (South Africa)
WKT/BAT - Aaron Jones (USA)
WKT/BAT - Heinrich Klaasen (South Africa)
WKT/BAT - Finn Allen (New Zealand)
AR - Mark Adair (Ireland)
AR - Marco Jansen (South Africa)
AR - James Neesham (New Zealand)
AR - Brian Masaba (Uganda)
BWL - Anrich Nortje (South Africa)
BWL - Trent Boult (New Zealand)
BWL - Lockie Ferguson (New Zealand)
Player in focus - Trent Boult
Even though New Zealand's T20 CWC dreams are all but over, the veteran Trent Boult has been bowling extremely well. He has bowled his full complement of overs in both New Zealand's matches and has figures of 3/16 vs West Indies and 2/22 vs Afghanistan. With matches left against PNG and Uganda, I wouldn't be surprised if he continues to take 2+ wickets a match. I have a feeling that Boult will finish with 10+ wickets for the tournament and he should be considered as a starting option every time New Zealand plays.
GDS Team to Beat - Round 14
Canada vs India
England vs Namibia
Australia vs Scotland
WKT - Jos Buttler (England)
WKT/BAT - Virat Kohli (India)
WKT/BAT - Phil Salt (England)
WKT/BAT - Travis Head (Australia)
AR - Marcus Stoinis (Australia)
AR - Gerhard Erasmus (Namibia)
AR - Hardik Pandya (India)
AR - David Wiese (Namibia)
BWL - Adam Zampa (Australia)
BWL - Jasprit Bumrah (India)
BWL - Jofra Archer (England)
Player in focus - Hardik Pandya
Hardik Pandya has been one of the best performing all-rounders in the tournament but has only really featured with the ball. He has had a lot of successes on the pitch in New York and has taken 2+ wickets in every match. Only once has he had the opportunity to bat and against Pakistan, he only managed to score 7 runs. Due to the form he has shown with the ball he is a must start for this round and should be considered as a starter every time India play.
