Last season's runners-up Gujarat Titans have had an up and down IPL 2024 so far. The Shubman Gill-led side are fifth in the points table with one defeat and two victories to their name.
As for the Punjab Kings, they are at the bottom-half of the table with one win and two defeats to their name. The Shikhar Dhawan-led team are yet provide a performance of champions and with GT up next, this could be a formidable side for the Punjab franchise.
PBKS need to win this fixture badly if they are to climb up the table whereas GT might use the home conditions to good use and gain advantage or two in match 17 of the IPL 2024.
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Here are the three major player battles for the GT vs PBKS, IPL 2024 tie -
1) Shubman Gill vs Kagiso Rabada
Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill is a quality batter and on his day, he could be a destructive player and could really hurt the opposing bowlers. Gill is yet to hit the stride of last season but with the IPL 2024 still in it's early stage, the young captain shouldn't take time to hit the ground running. However, PBKS possess some quality bowlers in their arsenal and one of them is South Africa's finest, Kagiso Rabada. The 28-year-old has scalped just four wickets in three games but he pacer just needs one game to come to life and uproot the opposition batter's stumps. This contest between Gill and Rabada could really set up nicely for a mouth-watering battle between bat and ball.
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2) Rashid Khan vs Liam Livingstone
Rashid Khan has not been effective so far and one could hardly blame the young Afghanistan spinner, as he is coming after a long-layoff from injury. The spinner has been out of action from last year's ODI World Cup. However, the 25-year-old's quality is undoubted and if he gets going, so does GT. However, PBKS power-hitter Liam Livingstone loves spin and on his day, could stifle any quality spin bowler. Livingstone's strike rate this IPL 2024 so far has been above 160 and could improve as the tournament moves forward.
3) Mohit Sharma vs Harshal Patel
Battle of two forgotten Indian pacers - Mohit Sharma of Gujarat Titans and PBKS' Harshal Patel. The GT pacer has been is prime form for his side by scalping six wickets in three games including a three-for. Patel on the other hand, has only three wickets to his name and could do better in the coming game. With the Ahmedabad track known to assist the pacers, their slower deliveries would really come into play. Thus, this battle between Sharma and Patel could really be the one to watch out.
Squads:
Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (c), David Miller, Matthew Wade, Wriddhiman Saha, Kane Williamson, Abhinav Manohar, B. Sai Sudharsan, Darshan Nalkande, Vijay Shankar, Jayant Yadav, Rahul Tewatia, Noor Ahmad, Sai Kishore, Rashid Khan, Joshua Little, Mohit Sharma, Azmatullah Omarzai, Umesh Yadav, Shahrukh Khan, Sushant Mishra, Kartik Tyagi, Manav Suthar, Spencer Johnson, Sandeep Warrier, BR Sharath. Players injured/withdrawn: Mohammed Shami, Robin Minz.
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Punjab Kings: Shikhar Dhawan (c), Matthew Short, Prabhsimran Singh, Jitesh Sharma, Sikandar Raza, Rishi Dhawan, Liam Livingstone, Atharva Taide, Arshdeep Singh, Nathan Ellis, Sam Curran, Kagiso Rabada, Harpreet Brar, Rahul Chahar, Harpreet Bhatia, Vidwath Kaverappa, Shivam Singh, Harshal Patel, Chris Woakes, Ashutosh Sharma, Vishwanath Pratap Singh, Shashank Singh, Tanay Thyagarajann, Prince Choudhary, Rilee Rossouw.
