Reaching consecutive finals in their first two seasons, the Gujarat Titans seem like a shadow of themselves. The team has only won 4 matches so far and is at the bottom of the points table. Except for Sai Sudharsan, none of the batsmen have been able to make a significant impact in this series. Sudharsan has scored 424 runs at an average of 42.40. Much was expected from Shubman Gill at the beginning of the season, but apart from a couple of half-centuries, he has also struggled to find success. However, there is no shortage of firepower, as David Miller and Rahul Tewatia can play crucial shots at will. On their day, the GT batting lineup can be very hard to stop. This opportunity to play against the weak bowling lineup of CSK might be just what they need. The bowling has been, to put it mildly, very mediocre. Mohit Sharma is the team’s top wicket-taker with 10 wickets but concedes over 11 runs per over. The spin duo of Rashid Khan and Nura Ahmed has failed to provide breakthroughs at crucial moments. Once again, the strength of GT, its spin bowlers, can halt CSK in its tracks. If they can get Shivam Dube early, the rest of the lineup will truly struggle against high-quality spin.
Although the defending champions aren’t in their best form, they’ve done enough to win 6 out of the 11 matches played so far. With as many as 4 teams, including CSK, sitting on 12 points, the team will be aiming to break away from the pack by winning this game. Ruturaj Gaikwad is in brilliant form with the bat and leads his team from the front. Gaikwad has scored 541 runs at an average of 60.11 and is the team’s top scorer. However, his opening partner, Ajinkya Rahane, has struggled at the opposite end. Daryl Mitchell has made a couple of good knocks in the recent few matches and seems to be partially regaining his lost form. Shivam Dube has had a decent season so far and will play a crucial role going forward. His two recent sixes off the first ball have cost CSK dearly, highlighting how much the team relies on his performance. MS Dhoni and Ravindra Jadeja have played a few good cameos already, but both players are expected to deliver much more. We believe CSK seriously hampers its team composition by including Jadeja and Dhoni. With Matisa Patirana and Mustafizur Rahman ruled out for the rest of the season, Tushar Deshpande will face additional pressure to perform better. The spin attack seems a bit weak as Jadeja is the only quality bowler. Jadeja picked up pace in the previous match, but this CSK bowling attack is very vulnerable to defeat.
