Current table-toppers Gujarat Titans are set to lock horns with Punjab Kings in Match no. 48 of IPL 2022 in Mumbai on Tuesday (May 3).
Hardik Pandya-led GT have been in superb form as they have won eight out of their nine games so far in the tournament and now they will aim to seal the playoff berth with the win against PBKS.
A sixth consecutive win will make them the first side to enter the play-offs.
A big reason for Gujarat's stellar run has been their ability to come back from tough situations. Whether it is Rahul Tewatia, David Miller, Rashid Khan or skipper Hardik Pandya – they all have produced match-winning efforts during the course of the tournament. If one has failed, the other has risen to the occasion.
On the other hand, PBKS have been inconsistent in the tournament and with five losses in nine games and are running out of time.
Their senior batters, captain Mayank Agarwal himself, Jonny Bairstow, Shikhar Dhawan and Liam Livingstone have done well in patches but have not been consistent enough. Barring pacer Arshdeep Singh, who seems to be getting better with every game, the bowling department can also do better. They did well in the previous game but the batters flopped to let the team down.
PBKS is likely to remain unchanged but if they decide to add a finisher in the team then Shahrukh Khan can make a comeback in the side in place of wicketkeeper-batter Jitesh Verma.
Notably, the last time Gujarat and Punjab met, they produced a cracking finish with Tewatia bringing his team back from the dead by smashing two sixes off the last two balls of the game
GT vs PBKS Probable Playing XI
Gujarat Titans: Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya (c), Sai Sudharsan, Rahul Tewatia, David Miller, Pradeep Sangwan, Rashid Khan, Lockie Ferguson, Alzarri Joseph, Mohammed Shami
Punjab Kings: Shikhar Dhawan, Mayank Agarwal (c), Jonny Bairstow, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma (wk)/Shahrukh Khan, Liam Livingstone, Kagiso Rabada, Rishi Dhawan, Sandeep Sharma, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh
