Gujarat Lions and Sunrisers Hyderabad will be desperately looking to get their campaign on track when the two teams lock horns in the 13th match of the Indian Premier League at Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium, Rajkot on Friday (April 14).
Gujarat Lions, who topped the table last year, are yet to open their account in the tournament. Suresh Raina’s men have lost both their opening encounters against Kolkata Knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad respectively.
On the other hand, Rising Pune Supergiant began the season on a good note, winning their opener against Mumbai Indians in a thrilling style. However, their form has dipped since then as they lost their next two games against Kings XI Punjab and Delhi Daredevils respectively.
Both the teams have been plagued with numerous issues for the time being and will be eager to sort it out before the upcoming match. So here are we taking a look at their forms, probable lineups, strength, prediction and more.
Overview:
First, we will take a look at the form of the home team. Losing the first two games by 10 wickets and 9 wickets is enough to get an idea of the team’s form. The batting clicked in the first game against Kolkata when they scored 183 for 4 but since then everything has gone wrong for them. Kolkata chased down the total inside 15 overs without losing a wicket and Gujarat’s poor form continued in the second game too when they managed only 137 against Sunrisers. The target was never going to pose a challenge for the defending champions’ in-form batters and they chased down the total with utmost ease inside 16 overs.
On the other hand, the visiting team began their season in a brilliant manner as their newly-appointed skipper Steve Smith led from the front to help his team chase down 184 against Mumbai Indians’. But they failed to sustain their momentum in the next two games and had to suffer heavy defeats against Kings XI Punjab and Delhi Daredevils.
View on think tank:
GL:
Ahead of the crunch clash, the team management will be mulling over including an experienced bowler in the team. The lack of a proven campaigner have hurt Gujarat badly and the star-studded batting lineup of Pune can surely cash in on it. The batsmen failed to get going against Sunrisers but the think tank is unlikely to tinker with it as all the batsmen in the team are more than capable of taking the game away from the opposition in the blink of an eye.
RPS:
Barring their chase against Mumbai Indians in their opening game, nothing much has gone right for the Pune-based outfit. The pacers have struggled to provide the breakthroughs and have also conceded too many runs. On the other hand, the batting also came a cropper in the last two games.
Tracking the strength:
GL:
The star-studded top order. The likes of Jason Roy, Brendon McCullum, Suresh Raina are yet to find their rhythm and if they manage to find it in the upcoming tie, it will definitely create a lot of problems for the opposition. Dinesh Karthik’s form is another positive for them
RPS:
The form of leg-spinner Imran Tahir is the only good news for them. The South Africa star is currently the joint-second highest wicket-taker with 6 scalps to his name.
Possibilities in the lineup:
GL:
During the last match, GL head coach Brad Hodge has said Ravindra Jadeja is available for selection and the all-rounder is likely to be included in the team. Andrew Tye or James Faulkner can also find a place in the team after the way the bowlers have failed in the first two matches.
RPS:
Steve Smith is expected to return to the team after missing the last game due to sickness. Manoj Tiwary, who too missed the last game due to his father’s death, is likely to walk back straight into the playing eleven.
Head-to-Head:
Both the team have met twice in the tournament and Gujarat Lions have come out on top on both the occasions.
Prediction:
Given the form of both the teams, it is quite tough to predict the winner of this tie but Rising Pune Supergiant are slight favourites to walk away with all the points. Pune’s bowling is looking a bit better than their opposition and so we are going with Steve Smith’s men to win this match. The batsmen of both the teams are yet to hit top gear so something around 160-170 is expected from the team which will bat first.