IPL 2023: 3 surprise picks for Dream11 fantasy team for RR vs LSG match

The Rajasthan Royals (RR) square off against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the 26th match of IPL 2023 on Wednesday, April 19, at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.

RR and LSG are first and second on the points table, respectively, with LSG leading four other teams on NRR. They'll want to get back to winning ways after losing their last encounter, a home match against the Punjab Kings.

Meanwhile, the Royals pulled off a sensational chase against the defending champions Gujarat Titans to pull clear of the other teams, going to the top of the table with four wins in five.

RR hold the edge over LSG, with Sanju Samson's side winning in both of these sides' meetings. However, with the two teams looking well-matched, we should have a cracking contest.

On that note, let's look at some differential Dream11 picks from the two teams.

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#3 Sandeep Sharma (RR)

Sandeep Sharma (right) has provided plenty of balance and flexibility to RR's bowling attack. (Image Courtesy: iplt20.com)

RR pacer Sandeep Sharma was signed as a replacement for star speedster Prasidh Krishna, and the IPL veteran has performed exceedingly well in the matches he's played in.

Due to RR's team composition, Sandeep has been forced to bowl at least one over at the death. It's brought to light a side of him we have scarcely seen in the IPL. Sandeep has predominantly been used as a swing bowler in the powerplay. Whether or not his quota of overs is completed, it has been rare to see him bowl after the 13 or 14-over mark.

However, he has really worked on his death-overs game this season, picking up some crucial wickets and bowling some really crunch overs with lots of confidence. While his ownership may not be as high as Trent Boult or Yuzvendra Chahal, he has a good chance of matching their scores or even outscoring them and is an excellent Dream11 differential.

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#2 Adam Zampa (RR)

RR have persisted with Adam Zampa as their fourth overseas player for the second game in a row. You get the feeling he'll retain his spot in the playing XI ahead of this game against LSG on what's expected to be a sluggish, spin-friendly surface.

The boundaries at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium are pretty long, providing some much-needed protection for the spinners, and the license to flight the ball and tease the batters into taking the attack to them. Zampa has always been a top-class limited-overs bowler, and also has some favorable match-ups against some LSG batters.

Zampa has the wood over KL Rahul and Nicholas Pooran, and RR skipper Sanju Samson will look to use him against these batters in the battle of match-ups. Samson has also been brave and hasn't shied away from bowling spinners in the death overs, so that could mean more chances of a wicket for Zampa.

His ownership is nowhere near the likes of Chahal, Boult, and Ashwin, and those who pick Zampa could be rewarded with a Dream11 haul.

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#1 Deepak Hooda (LSG)

Deepak Hooda has struggled to find his form in IPL 2023.

Lucknow Super Giants batter Deepak Hooda hasn't enjoyed a good start to this IPL season. The No. 3 batter has scored only 37 runs in five innings, averaging a poor 7.40, and will want to break free of this torrid run against the Rajasthan Royals.

These performances are nowhere near the form he showed last season to break into the Indian T20I setup, and KL Rahul's side needs him to come good soon. On a wicket that should be on the slower side, Hooda's six-hitting abilities, especially against the spinners, will come in handy for LSG.

Any player who bats as high as No. 3 and has low ownership should be considered a good differential regardless of form. Deepak Hooda is too good a player to carry on like this and is due a big score. This could well be the game he gets it.