Gujarat Titans and Lucknow SuperGiants will face each other in the 64th game of the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL) on 22nd May at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Match preview:
The ongoing edition of the IPL is about to get over, the playoffs teams are almost confirmed. The upcoming game between Gujarat Titans and Lucknow SuperGiants is no different either in context of the tournament but it can be helpful for Gujarat to lock up that top spot in the playoffs.
Gujarat, led by Shubman Gill has had a great run so far in the tournament. They have won nine games out of twelve and emerged as a consistent side in this tournament.
Although they much have to worry about but one thing they need to make sure is their middle-order get tested before the playoffs begin, their top-order has been solid and delivered in this phase of the tournament so now the side would hope to test their middle order as it was obvious what happens when Shubman Gill, B Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler don’t go really big in the first encounter versus Lucknow.
All the hopes will be on Rutherford. Sherfane Rutherford’s IPL season has been his greatest to date. In his last two spells, he has played more frequently and performed admirably, averaging 38.16 and striking at 159.02.
He will have greater responsibility in the knockout stages since Buttler’s exit would lighten GT’s top order, so he would like to build momentum in the final two league games.
However, it is not going to be much of a bigger game for LSG as they are already out of the tournament and are coming from 5 consecutive losses in the tournament.
They would be playing for pride and the only thing which will give them confidence is that they have beaten this team previously.
Probable Playing XIIS:
Gujarat Titans (probable XII): 1 Shubman Gill (capt), 2 B Sai Sudharsan, 3 Jos Buttler (wk), 4 Sherfane Rutherford, 5 M Shahrukh Khan, 6 Rahul Tewatia, 7 Rashid Khan, 8 Kagiso Rabada, 9 Arshad Khan, 10 R Sai Kishore, 11 Mohammed Siraj, 12 Prasidh Krishna.
Lucknow Super Giants (probable XII): 1 Mitchell Marsh, 2 Aiden Markram, 3 Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), 4 Nicholas Pooran, 5 Ayush Badoni, 6 Abdul Samad, 7 Shardul Thakur, 8 Ravi Bishnoi, 9 Akash Deep, 10 Avesh Khan, 11 Shahbaz Ahmed/Manimaran Siddharth, 12 Will O’Rourke.
Pitch and weather report:
At the Narendra Modi Stadium, teams that bat first have won four of the five games played so far this season. In the other game, against the Delhi Capitals, GT chased 204. For whoever wins the toss, setting a total might be the best course of action.
With quick bowlers taking a wicket every 20 balls at the venue this season compared to spinners who strike once every 23 deliveries, the pitch is also expected to favor quick bowlers more.
Prediction:
Gujarat is favourite to win the upcoming game.
Where to watch:
India: Star Sports Network, JioHotstar
Australia: Kayo TV, FoxTel Go
Bangladesh: T Sports, Toffee app
New Zealand: Sky Sports NZ
South Africa: SuperSport
Sri Lanka: Dialog
UK: Sky Sports, SkyGo
USA: Willow TV
Afghanistan: ATN
MENA: Cricbuzz
