Dec 14: Dambulla Viiking vs Jaffna Stallions, Hambantota

Pro Tip: Allrounders are the primary strength for both these sides. Pack your side with all-rounders and big-game players.

Our XI: Niroshan Dickwella, Avishka Fernando, Upul Tharanga, Samit Patel, Angelo Perera, Dasun Shanaka, Anwar Ali, Shoaib Malik, Thisara Perera, Wanindu Hasaranga, Usman Shinwari

Substitutes: Ramesh Mendis, Lahiru Kumara, Dhananjaya de Silva, Vijayakanth Viyaskanth

Player availability: Jaffna Stallions' Dhananjaya de Silva is in doubt for this game. We might not always be able to tip you off about late injury (or other relevant) updates, so please finalise your team after the toss.

Captain: Wanindu Hasaranga

The young legspinner has been the most prolific bowler in the tournament so far with 13 wickets, has the best economy with 5.48 and also has the best average with 12.23 (minimum five overs bowled). He has not gone wicketless yet which makes him the safest choice for captaincy. Nobody has scored more runs than him in death overs, 93 runs in 43 balls at a strike rate of 216.27.

Vice-captain: Avishka Fernando

One of the most impressive young batsmen from Sri Lanka, Fernando has blown hot and cold in LPL 2020. He has a couple of 80-plus scores and also has three single-digit scores which makes him a high-risk high reward selection for vice-captain. He has scored 209 runs in six innings at an average of 41.80 and a strike rate of 134.83

Hot Picks

Dasun Shanaka: The Viiking skipper has been in sublime form with the bat scoring 273 runs in eight games which makes him the third leading run scorer in LPL 2020. He has scored 184 runs in 122 balls at an average of 92 in middle overs. He has also taken four wickets so far.

Angelo Perera: This 30-year old was not the first-choice player for Viiking but got a chance because of an injury to Oshada Fernando. It turned out to be blessing in disguise for Viiking as Perera has scored 222 runs in six innings at an average of 55.5 and a strike rate of 142.30.

Thisara Perera: Perera has shown his quality with a couple of breath-taking innings - a 44-ball 97* and a 28-ball 68. He has not been able to replicate that form in the recent games. However as the captain of Jaffna Stallions, we are backing him to perform in the knockout game. He has also picked up five wickets so far.

Differential Picks

Shoaib Malik: The only Asian cricketer to score 10,000 T20 runs certainly knows how to approach big games. Since the start of 2019, after preliminary games, Malik has scored 178 runs in six innings at an average of 44.5 and a strike rate of 157.52. In LPL 2020 too, he has found form at the right time scoring 59 and 29 in the last two games.

Anwar Ali: The Pakistan all-rounder has been the leading wicket-taker for Dumbulla Viiking with eight wickets in six games. He bowls majorly in powerplay and death overs, which are the best phase to pick wickets and his numbers suggest the same. He has picked up four wickets each in powerplay and death overs striking once in every 12 and 10 balls respectively.

Alternate Scenarios

If Dhananjaya de Silva is fit, he can replace Upul Tharanga