Gujarat Titans (GT), placed second in the points table, will play the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH), placed third, in Match 40 of IPL 2022, on 27 April, at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai.
However, Gujarat’s only defeat of their inaugural campaign so far came in the first match between these two sides, two weeks ago, when Hyderabad won by eight wickets in Navi Mumbai.
Both come into this match off the back of recent wins. Gujarat beating Kolkata Knight Riders by eight runs, while SRH enjoyed a thumping victory over the Royal Challengers Bangalore, bowling them out for just 68 and cruising to a nine-wicket win.
GT know that a few more wins will guarantee them a place in the play-offs, something that probably exceeded their expectations in their first season.
Much may depend on the toss. All five Sunrisers wins so far have come when they have had to chase targets, with their bowling attack – particularly their four pacers – constraining the opposition batters. They have proved less assured when batting first.
This is being billed as the battle of fast bowlers, with Lockie Ferguson and Umran Malik competing to see who can test the speed gun the most.
If Gujarat have had a recent weakness, it is in their Powerplay batting. Shubman Gill and Wriddhiman Saha, who has replaced Matthew Wade, failing to make the most of their opportunities.
Likely XIs:
Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Vijay Shankar, Hardik Pandya (c), Abhinav Manohar, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Alzarri Joseph, Lockie Ferguson, Mohammed Shami.
Sunrisers Hyderabad: Kane Williamson (c), Abhishek Sharma, Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Shashank Singh, J. Suchith, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Marco Jansen, T. Natarajan, Umran Malik.
Fantasy tips:
• Williamson to lead from the front for his side with the bat, pick him.
• Pick as many fast bowlers as you can. Ferguson, Shami, Natarajan, Umran, Bhuvneshwar, Jansen have all been good.
• Pandya may not bowl his full quota. You may want to pick Tewatia instead.
• Pick Pooran as your wicketkeeper ahead of Saha.
Prediction:
GT’s only loss so far this year came against SRH and captain Hardik Pandya would love to avenge that. If he gets the rub of the green and wins the toss, this may be his chance.
Streaming:
‘Match 40 between GT and SRH will start at 19:30 on Wednesday, April 27th. You can watch the match on the Star Network and Hotstar.