IPL 2023: Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings will compete with Impact Players for the first time
The Indian Premier League 2023 will begin on March 31 with a match between defending champions Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings. In this match, both the strong teams will go on the field to start the IPL with a win under the leadership of their flamboyant captains. This match is going to be very special because in this Hardik Pandya is going to take the field against his mentor i.e. Mahendra Singh Dhoni.
In this first match, Hardik Pandya’s champion team Gujarat Titans will try to continue the success achieved last time. The team of Gujarat Titans, playing their second season, was successful in defeating Guru Dhoni’s team twice last season. This time also the team of Gujarat Titans is seen in a very strong form. At the same time, Mahendra Singh Dhoni is also eager to start the tournament with a win with the team.
Such is the team of Gujarat
Shubman Gill is in the best form of his career and Rashid Khan’s consistency has shown no signs of slowing down. Pandya himself has worked hard on his fitness and has been impressive with both the ball and the bat since his return from injury in the last IPL. The team will miss the experienced David Miller in this match but Rahul Tewatia has done well with the bat of late. He will try to fill this gap. New Zealand veteran Kane Williamson is also in the team. Although he is not considered very dangerous in this format, but in low-scoring matches, he can become a trouble-shooter for the team.
Know the condition of Chennai
On the other hand, the four-time champions Chennai Super Kings had a disastrous last season as they finished ninth in the points table. Dhoni is 42 years old but he has no break in the matter of captaincy. His plans were effective in the last session as well but there was a lack in their implementation. When the 16th season begins on Friday, many changes will be seen in the competition. Due to the ‘impact player’ rule, 12 players will play in the match. Dhoni, who uses his resources very thoughtfully, can also make himself an ‘Impact Player’ if needed. Ben Stokes’ presence for Chennai will definitely trouble the opposition but the England Test captain will not be bowling against Gujarat Titans. The starting XI of the team will include foreign players like Devon Conway, Stokes and Moeen Ali. The team’s performance, however, will largely depend on how Ravindra Jadeja, Ambati Rayudu and Dhoni perform with the bat. Dhoni will also have the option of a fast bowler like Mathisa Pathirana, who bowls like spinner Mahesh Teekshana and Lasith Malinga. The Gujarat team does not have any reliable Indian fast bowler other than Mohammed Shami. Shivam Mavi comes into the team but the decision to drop Lockie Ferguson was incomprehensible. It remains to be seen how effective Alzarri Joseph will be in Indian pitches. Pradeep Sangwan and Mohit Sharma both are experienced players but they have played their best cricket. The team will have to make a difficult decision to choose between Wriddhiman Saha and Kona Bharat for wicketkeeping.
These are the possible playing 11 of both the teams
Gujarat Titans: Hardik Pandya (Captain), Shubman Gill, Kona Bharat, Wriddhiman Saha, Kane Williamson, Rahul Tewatia, Abhinav Manohar, Mohammed Shami, Pradeep Sangwan, R Sai Kishore, Vijay Shankar, Sai Sudarshan, Rashid Khan, Shivam Mavi, Mathew Wade, Odion Smith, Urvil Patel, Darshan Nalkande, David Miller (unavailable for 1st 2 matches), Josh Little (unavailable for 1st match), Yash Dayal, Jayant Yadav, Noor Ahmed, Alzarri Joseph.
Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Captain), Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ambati Rayudu, Moeen Ali, Ben Stokes, Ravindra Jadeja, Ajinkya Rahane, Sisanda Magala, Ravindra Jadeja, Shivam Dube, Dwayne Pretorius, Ahya Mondal, Nishant Sindhu, Rajvardhan Hangergekar, Mitchell Santner, Subhranshu Senapati, Simarjit Singh, Mathisa Pathirana, Mahesh Teekshan, Bhagat Verma, Prashant Solanki, Sheikh Rashid, Tushar Deshpande.
