Guides & Strategy

The IPL game · chasing 14-0-0

1. Fit beats raw rating

The single biggest mistake is drafting the highest OVR available every time. A 98-rated death bowler is worthless opening the batting. Each slot multiplies a player's rating by a position-fit factor — pick players who actually suit the role and your team rating climbs fast, even with slightly lower names.

2. Place for fit — and set your order

You choose where every drafted player goes. When you pick someone, the slots that suit them light up — that's the game telling you where they score best. Put your keeper in the keeper slot (a keeper there is worth full value; a batter parked there is not), your strikers up top, your quicks in the attack. You can tap any placed player to move them or swap two around, so don't panic if an early pick lands somewhere awkward — reshuffle once you see how the XI fills out, and set a batting order that makes sense.

3. Respect the team balance

The simulator penalises lop-sided sides: no wicketkeeper, fewer than three frontline bowlers, or too few specialist batters all cost you. Whatever template you choose, make sure you come away with a keeper, a top order, and enough bowling to take ten wickets.

4. Use your re-spins wisely

You only get two re-spins a game. Don't burn them early on a squad that's “a bit meh” — save them for when you land on a weak franchise-season and still have a key slot (your keeper, your third seamer) to fill.

5. Know the golden squads

Some franchise-seasons are loaded. CSK and MI in their dynasty years, the 2016 Sunrisers attack, the 2024–2026 batting line-ups — landing on one of these is a chance to grab an elite player who also fits an open slot. Learn which eras are deep in which roles.

6. Don't forget the all-rounders

All-rounders fit a wide range of slots and rarely tank your fit score. A great all-rounder in the middle order or at the death is often worth more to your overall rating than a one-dimensional superstar in the wrong position.

7. Expert mode is the real test

Once you've learned the ropes in Classic, switch to Expert: no stats, no ratings, just names. It's the truest test of your IPL knowledge — and a far better brag when you build The Immortals blind.

8. One of each player — plan around it

You can only draft each person once, even though a star shows up across many franchise-seasons (Virat Kohli appears in 19). The moment you place him, he's gone from every squad you spin afterwards. So don't bank on grabbing the same favourite twice — if you take Kohli early from one Royal Challengers season, a later Royal Challengers spin won't offer him again. Two different players who happen to share a surname (R Sharma and I Sharma) are unaffected — only the exact same player is blocked.

9. Challenge a friend — head-to-head

A great XI is more fun when someone has to beat it. From the result screen, tap Challenge a friend to copy a link — whoever opens it drafts their own eleven and the two teams are scored head-to-head for a winner. Two tips: your adjusted OVR is what decides it, so shoring up a weak slot or fixing a poor fit matters more than one marquee name; and because your opponent sees your XI before they build, expect them to target your gaps — a well-balanced side is harder to out-draft than a top-heavy one.

The Test Cricket game · chasing 13-0-0

1. Draft the squad for the XI you'll actually field

You draft fifteen but only eleven play — two openers, numbers 3–6, an all-rounder at 7, and four bowlers. Every pick should be competing for one of those slots. The four who miss out are your insurance, so make them useful cover (a spare opener, a fifth bowler), not a fourth middle-order star you'll never field.

2. There's no keeper slot — but you still need a keeper

Unlike the IPL game, a Test XI has no dedicated keeper slot: your keeper belongs in the middle order, where they're worth full value (think Gilchrist at 6, Dhoni at 7). An XI without a keeper anywhere takes a balance penalty — so draft one in your fifteen and get them in the side.

3. Four bowling slots want four genuine wicket-takers

Slots 8–11 score a player's bowling rating, so batters hiding down the order cost you heavily. You need ten wickets twice to win a Test: four frontline bowlers plus the all-rounder at 7 is the classic five-option attack, and the simulator penalises anything thinner.

4. Red-ball quality isn't T20 fame

Test ratings are built from patience, average, conversion and run volume — not strike rate. A T20 megastar can carry a modest red-ball rating, while a grinder like Pujara rates elite. Read the card, not the reputation. Ratings are era-normalised within each decade, so a 2000s great and a 2020s great compare fairly.

5. Learn the deep nation-eras

Some spins are gold: Australia in the 2000s, India and England in the 2010s, South Africa's pace stocks, Sri Lanka's 2000s greats. With only two re-spins, save them for genuinely thin squads — and remember each player can only be drafted once, even if they appear in more than one era.

6. Watch the balance warnings

During the squad draft the game warns you live — no keeper yet, too few bowling options, not enough batters. Those aren't decoration: each unfixed gap becomes a rating penalty at simulation time. Clear all three warnings before your fifteenth pick and the XI picks itself.

New here? Start with How to Play for the IPL game or the Test Cricket guide. For inspiration, read about the greatest IPL teams of all time and the lessons each one teaches.