Despite not being a powerhouse of Indian cricket, the state of Gujarat witnessed the first ever recorded cricket on Indian soil (1721), and produced India’s first outstanding cricketer (KS Ranjitsinhji) and joint first Padma Shri winning cricketer (Jasu Patel). It was only a matter of time before the IPL had a team from Gujarat.
The Gujarat Lions were inducted into the IPL in 2016, when Chennai Super Kings and Rajasthan Royals were serving a ban. Under Suresh Raina, they topped the points table in their first season before losing both Qualifiers. They finished seventh next season, which was also their last.
Five years later, with Ahmedabad boasting the largest cricket stadium in the world and the IPL expanding to 10 teams, Gujarat Titans are set to play in the IPL for the first time.
In the pre-auction drafts, they signed up Rashid Khan, Hardik Pandya, and Shubman Gill. Arguably the greatest contemporary T20 bowler, Rashid was a dream pick for most franchises. Despite his fitness issues, uncertainty over bowling, and an ordinary 2021, local boy Pandya was a pick based on batting alone. His strike rate of 154 is the sixth-best in IPL history and second-best among Indians.
Gill, on the other hand, is a curious pick. There is little doubt over his talent, or over the fact that a long, fruitful career in national colours awaits him. However, while scoring runs, Gill has not been an outstanding starter in the Powerplay overs for the Kolkata Knight Riders, striking at only 123. Nevertheless, he is likely to open here.
The unfortunate withdrawal of Jason Roy leaves a gaping hole. The Titans may get Rahmanullah Gurbaz or Matthew Wade to open with Gill – unless, of course, they look at a curious statistic. Among Indians with over 750 IPL runs, Wriddhiman Saha’s strike rate in the Powerplay overs (133) has been bettered by only Virender Sehwag and Prithvi Shaw.
That probably makes Saha a likely choice as Gill’s opening partner. At No 3, Vijay Shankar will add balance to the side with both bat and ball. While going underutilised by Rajasthan Royals, David Miller found his mojo back in T20Is, slamming 377 runs at 150 in 2021.
Despite not looking intimidating, the Gujarat Titans top four give a solid look to it. They will be followed by Pandya and Wade, men capable of demolishing any bowling attack when they get going, especially in the death overs.
The problem begins after that. Lockie Ferguson has often bothered opposition batters with extra pace, but barring him and Rashid, the attack does not look threatening. Despite his improvement over the past year or so, Mohammed Shami is yet to replicate the class of his outstanding Test or ODI spells in T20 cricket. Alzarri Joseph had burst into the IPL with an incredible spell, but he is likely to remain Ferguson’s backup.
The rest of the Gujarat attack does not inspire confidence. If they pick all-rounder Rahul Tewatia and left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore to complete the XI, the attack looks weak despite Shankar and Pandya’s availability as bowlers. On small grounds, they are likely to find it difficult to contain the power-hitters.
There is not much option in the bench, either. At some point during the tournament, the Titans may fall back on Pradeep Sangwan, Yash Dayal, or the all-rounder Dominic Drakes (surely three left-arm seamers cannot be a coincidence?). They are likely to play at some point, perhaps even two of them together. They may throw in Noor Ahmed, their Afghan left-arm wrist spinner, as a surprise element.
However, unless someone improves significantly over the course of the tournament, the Gujarat bowling will depend solely on Rashid, Ferguson, and Shami. Given Rashid’s preference towards bowling in the middle overs, Gujarat may find themselves short of bowlers in the Powerplay and at the death.
To sum up, Gujarat’s batting, despite a chink or two, is likely to pull through, thanks to their power hitters. The bowling, on the other hand, may cost them matches throughout this edition.
Likely starting XI: Shubman Gill, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Vijay Shankar, David Miller, Hardik Pandya (c), Matthew Wade (wk), Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Shami, Lockie Ferguson, R. Sai Kishore.
Abhishek Mukherjee is the Chief Editor at CricketNews and co-author of Sachin and Azhar at Cape Town.
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