Gujarat Titans (GT) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) debuted in the same season in 2022. Despite being the league’s rookies, both sides hit the ground running. GT won the title in their maiden season, and finished as the runner-ups in the next, while LSG made it to the playoffs consistently during those two editions. Last season, however, Gujarat and Lucknow underwent a similar sort of misfortune, which saw them miss out on the playoffs for the first time.
This season, GT have managed to undo the humiliation from the previous season with their sheer dominance. LSG, on the other hand, have unravelled badly. Their playoff hopes are long dead, and all that’s left for them to do now is to try to avoid defeats against the tournament behemoths Gujarat Titans and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in their last two games.
GT have only lost three games out of 12 this year, two of which came against teams who have hardly scraped through the tournament, including Rajasthan Royals (RR) and, interestingly, LSG themselves. To LSG’s credit, that win wasn’t a fluke. So, there is precedent to play the spoiler.
But wanting to do it again, especially after having lost the last five of their six games, only limits this desire to a pipe dream. GT, meanwhile, are stronger than ever. They come fresh off a ten-wicket win against DC and a last-ball thriller in a rain-truncated game versus Mumbai Indians (MI). They are in good spirits, better than ever, even. Their morale is high. And so, a top-two finish to get two cracks at the final is well within their grasp.
Team Overview:
Sai Sudharsan leads the highest run-scorers’ chart, followed closely by Shubman Gill at the second spot for good measure. And if that wasn’t enough, Jos Buttler is dogging behind, just a hundred runs away. That pretty much sums up why GT’s top-order has averaged something north of 60 this season, which is a far cry from RCB’s 37.27 in second place. This has even put their middle-order’s efficacy in the shadow, with them not getting enough game time to prove whether they can step up if the top-order fails to get going someday.
Interestingly, this is why GT’s No. 4 to No. 7 average the least among all teams (21.39) this year, while striking at the highest rate (165). All the middle-order has left to do, after the top three have put enough runs on the board, is go berserk and add some quick runs without worrying much about staying at the crease longer.
Much of the confidence that GT’s batting lineup draws in its entirety comes from their bowlers. Prasidh Krishna has hardly ever wandered out of the top five in the highest wicket-takers list. In death, GT’s bowlers become more frugal than any other team, having bowled over 20 overs’ worth of dot balls in the final five, more than any other side this season.
If there’s any team that could be considered in the same league as GT’s top-order, it’s LSG. Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, and Nicholas Pooran have done the heavy lifting for the entire team. Barring GT and RCB, LSG’s top order is responsible for the highest percentage of their team’s runs this year. However, their middle-order has failed to up the ante more often than not. They have the second-worst average and strike rate, and so it reflects in the results.
On top of it all, their bowling attack has taken a hit with Digvesh Rathi’s recent suspension. Already the most expensive side this year, LSG’s defense against a ruthless GT lineup has further weakened.
Head-to-Head Matches:
LSG and GT have played six games against each other, with Gujarat dominating the matchup with four wins.
Weather and Pitch Report:
Among venues that have hosted at least five games this season, the Narendra Modi International Stadium has seen the second-highest runs scored per over, just behind Hyderabad by a few ticks. Teams have crossed 200 in six out of ten innings played here. Expect this game to go down the same path. Teams batting second have only won once here, which means dew might not cause much trouble, though the temperature has risen since the last game. It’ll be interesting to see how the top three of both sides fare on a ground that offers plenty of early movement for fast bowlers.
Prediction:
With a solid batting lineup and an incisive bowling attack, this is definitely GT’s game to win.
Where to Watch:
India: Star Sports Network, JioHotstar
UK: Sky Sports, SkyGo
USA: Willow TV
Australia: Kayo TV, FoxTel Go
Bangladesh: T Sports, Toffee app
New Zealand: Sky Sports NZ
Afghanistan: ATN
South Africa: SuperSport
Sri Lanka: Dialog
MENA: Cricbuzz
