Cynosure of all eyes: Hardik Pandya shall be eager to show his captaincy mettle in opposition to none apart from M.S. Dhoni when Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings conflict on Tuesday.
| Photo Credit: VIJAY SONEJI
The IPL 2023 Qualifier-1 between Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans on the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai on Tuesday will see techniques, face-offs and, above all, raw emotions take centrestage. After all, if this seems to be M.S. Dhoni’s farewell season, it’s Chennai’s final probability to savour its Thala in motion.
Chennai openers Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway, with their silky wrists, have discovered type constantly, and together with power-hitter Shivam Dube, they represent CSK’s engine room that has churned out success this yr.
The Titans, too, have had each member of their staff make a telling contribution in some unspecified time in the future. They chased down 198 in opposition to RCB within the final league sport — their highest profitable chase — with ease, due to Shubman Gill, who involves Chennai using on back-to-back tons of.
Moreover, GT’s bowling assault suggests better depth than its opponent’s. Mohammed Shami’s great shows of seam and swing haven’t diminished during the last month, whereas Mohit Sharma stays composed sufficient with the ball in his hand to bother the very best batters.
However, it’s the spin bowling by Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad that offers Gujarat a slight edge. They have bowled extra skillfully within the competitors than their CSK counterparts. If the ball turns, the duel between Rashid and his reverse quantity, Ravindra Jadeja, shall be a delight.
Rashid’s face-off with Gaikwad might be essential. He has dismissed him twice in 5 T20 innings and conceded solely 66 off 45 balls. Meanwhile, Matheesha Pathirana will pose a stiff problem for the GT finishers. He has 15 wickets from 10 video games this season.
All stated and accomplished, Dhoni has seemingly turn into extra indomitable as captain in his twilight, whereas for Hardik Pandya, a profitable title defence might result in his anointment as India’s future T20I captain.
The symbolic significance will not be misplaced within the bigger context of Indian cricket.
