TEAM PREVIEW
Follow UsIPL 2023 finish: Runners-up
New additions: Azmatullah Omarzai, Umesh Yadav, Shahrukh Khan, Sushant Mishra, Kartik Tyagi, Manav Suthar, Spencer Johnson, Robin Minz
You look at any sport around the globe, you won’t find too many teams achieve as much success as Gujarat Titans have in their first two years of existence. Winners in 2022 and runners-up in 2023 - the Titans have taken to the IPL like a duck to water. Both times, they ended the league stage as table toppers and have won 23 of their 33 games so far.
But things are different this time around. Their inspirational skipper Hardik Pandya has gone back to Mumbai Indians, while their ace paceman Mohammed Shami recently underwent an ankle surgery and has been ruled out of the IPL 2024. Shubman Gill is the new captain and how he manages the team with head coach Ashish Nehra will be something to watch out for.
What can win them the trophy?
Quality finishers
While there are franchises struggling to find one or two good finishers, the Titans have them in abundance. David Miller and Rahul Tewatia are proven finishers and have won Gujarat some ridiculous games across the last two seasons. Rashid Khan is not as consistent as the aforementioned two but has won GT a couple of games with the bat almost single-handedly.
They have lost only four of their 18 games while chasing and it’s largely because of the quality of finishers in their arsenal. Last season, the Titans scored more runs than any other team in the death overs. They had the second-best scoring rate (11.7) and the best average (28) in this phase. This year, they have gone a step further and added Shahrukh Khan to the list.
Now, the Tamil Nadu batter hasn’t done much in the IPL, but 279 runs @ 19.93 and a strike rate of 162.21 in the last five overs isn’t too bad. The Titans also have Abhinav Manohar and Matthew Wade as backups. If we look at the last season, Vijay Shankar (122 off 47) had a strike rate of 259.6 in the death overs. Sai Sudarshan (88 off 41) went at 214.6, Rashid (102 off 47) at 217 and Gill (105 off 56) at 187.5.
This is one area where Gujarat will have an edge over other franchises.
GT batters love spin
Last year, the Titans had the best average (42.1) and balls/wicket (29) against spin. That’s not it, they also had the second-best scoring rate (8.7). The likes of Gill (average 63, strike rate 158.2), Sai Sudarshan (133, 130.4), Miller (60, 148.2), Shankar (52.5, 150) and Rashid (35 off 15 without getting out) all had super impressive numbers against spin.
In IPL 2023, there were 12 batters with an average of more than 50 and a strike rate of more than 140 against spin (minimum 100 runs) and three of them were from Gujarat. We all know how dangerous Gill can be in the middle overs, while Miller can also find boundaries with ease. They also got Azmatullah Omarzai in the auction, who hasn’t batted much in T20Is, but has an average of close to 50 against spin in ODIs.
Spin attack to die for
If the conditions permit, there’s a possibility of Rashid, Noor Ahmad, and Sai Kishore featuring in the same XI. We all know what Rashid is capable of, so there’s no point wasting time on what he can do. The only update worth mentioning is the Afghanistan legspinner is back in action after being out for four months due to a back injury. Rashid made his return against Ireland and scalped eight wickets in three games at an average of 5.62.
The GT spinners had the best average (22.6) and balls/wicket (16.8) in the IPL 2023. Noor was also a revelation and even outbowled Rashid on a couple of occasions. The left-arm wristspinner claimed 16 wickets in 13 games at an economy of 7.8. He also had a pretty good SA20, picking up 12 wickets in six matches at an economy of 5.8.
And considering they don’t have much quality in the pace department, don’t be surprised if Gujarat rely more on their spinners and play all the aforementioned three on a regular basis. Talking about Sai Kishore, the left-arm spinner was the leading wicket-taker in the last Ranji Trophy. He has only featured in five IPL games but the absence of Shami could work in his favour. An economy of 5.5 after 57 T20s surely warrants more game-time.
What could cost them the title?
Absence of Shami
Gujarat will miss Shami more than Pandya. Even the latter’s bowling will be missed more than his batting. The two bowled the majority of powerplay overs for GT across the last two seasons and their absence is going to hurt Gujarat. If we look at the last two editions, no other bowler has more wickets than Shami (28 @ 21.3) in the first six overs. Their presence allowed Mohit Sharma to operate in the last two phases and it worked really well for the franchise.
They bought Umesh Yadav in the auction who is historically known for his new-ball bowling but the 36-year-old had a terrible IPL 2023. The right-armer could pick up only one wicket in eight innings and leaked runs at 9.9. Even that solitary wicket came in the middle overs. Kartik Tyagi is another new addition but an average of 44.1 and an economy of 10 after 19 IPL games isn’t inspiring at all. Darshan Nalkande, Sandeep Warrier and Sushant Mishra also haven’t done much at this level.
Joshua Little featured in 10 games last season, however, the left-arm seamer from Ireland is more of a powerplay specialist. He was given a different role last year and if that’s the case, GT could try someone like Spencer Johnson for whom they paid INR 10 crore in the auction. The 28-year-old from Australia can generate good pace and is a better all-phase option than Little. The Titans could also hold him back and use Umesh and Omarzai in the powerplay. The latter can swing the ball both ways, like we saw in the last ODI World Cup.
Things to watch out for
- Gill-Nehra combo
- Life without Shami
- Is Omarzai ready to replace Hardik?
- Rashid returning from injury
Probable XI
Shubman Gill (c), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Sai Sudharsan, Vijay Shankar, David Miller*, Azmatullah Omarzai*, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan*, Sai Kishore, Spencer Johnson/Noor Ahmad*, Mohit Sharma
Umesh Yadav (impact player)
There’s also an option of playing Kane Williamson ahead of Omarzai, however, that will lead to GT having too many anchors at the top. Jayant Yadav could be used against a team like CSK who have more left-handers in their batting line-up.
Uncapped X-Factor
Spencer Johnson
The tearaway quick has played one ODI and five T20Is for Australia but is fairly new to cricket at this level. Johnson has featured in the BBL and the Hundred but will be playing in the IPL for the first time. He is tall and can generate extra bounce, constantly bowling over 140 kmph, something that Gujarat desperately need having released Alzarri Joseph. Every team have a batter or two who struggle against high pace and that’s where Johnson could make an impact.
Schedule till April 7
March 24: Gujarat Titans vs Mumbai Indians (Home)
March 26: Chennai Super Kings vs Gujarat Titans (Away)
March 31: Gujarat Titans vs Sunrisers Hyderabad (Home)
April 4: Gujarat Titans vs Punjab Kings (Home)
April 7: Lucknow Super Giants vs Gujarat Titans (Away)
