Not even a week since the inception of the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League, fans around the globe have started to rename it as ‘Injury Premier League’.
In the tournament opener against Chennai Super Kings, Gujarat Titans incurred a massive blow as crucial batter Kane Williamson hurt himself trying to field the ball at the edge of the deep square leg boundary. The New Zealand skipper leapt towards the ball and parried it inside the ropes, outcoming a four. In the act, he bulked his weight on the right knee and was found clutching his knee for some minutes.
The Mount Maunganui-born batter was immediately taken away from the field and later substituted by B Sai Sudharsan via the impact player rule. On Monday, he flew back to his nation and will be assessed by the doctors.
New Zealand is currently squaring off against Sri Lanka at their home and has an important Pakistan series in the queue but Williamson isn’t a part of the national team due to his commitments in the cash-rich league.
But who knew that one-fourth of the Fab four would take up such a blow in the first game for his new franchise? Now, the Titans are left with a void to be filled by the management. So, what are the possible options that can serve as replacements for the injured Kane Williamson in the GT squad? Let’s have a look.
#5 Reeza Hendricks
The charismatic batter can be one of the players that Gujarat Titans could target for filling the shoes of Kane Williamson. He has an elegant touch to his play and has a wide range of shots in his repertoire. And the best part is, Hendricks is arriving off a scintillating form in international cricket.
Although he has a small sample size of two matches playing in India, the Proteas batter has an average of 38.50 with a half-century. Hendricks accumulated 172 runs in the recent three-match T20I series against West Indies, averaging 57.33. In addition, he has 8 forty-plus scores in his last ten innings of the Twenty over format.
The 33-year-old is someone who paces his innings with the passage of time and once settled, can turn out to be deadly for the opposition bowlers. He is yet to make his IPL debut and GT could be the first team to rope him and offer a platform to showcase what he possesses.
#4 Kusal Mendis
Kusal Mendis lacks consistency but can fire at the top
If you look at the top-order batting of the Gujarat Titans, it is observable that the side lacks a swashbuckler who can swing the bat from the word go. It comprises Wriddhiman Saha and Shubman Gill who are more of touch and graft.
Tamil Nadu’s B Sai Sudharsan, who substituted Kane Williamson in the first match is also a player who belongs to the same category. So, if GT needs a swashbuckler anytime in the top three, it could be Kusal Mendis.
The Sri Lankan batter was seen to be in superb form during the 2022 Asia Cup scoring 155 runs in six innings. He was also the sixth-highest run-getter of the tournament and was ranked in the same position in the highest strike rate tally.
On seven occasions, Mendis has crossed the 20s mark in his last ten T20Is. Out of which, he has half-centuries against India, Netherlands (WCT20), and Ireland (WCT20). Although he is a wicketkeeper batter and GT isn’t short of a gloveman, the management can focus only on the batting perspective of Mendis.
#3 Dawid Malan
Once ranked the no.1 ICC batter in the international circuit, Dawid Malan failed to attract bidders during the 2023 IPL auction. If the Gujarat-based franchise is looking for a batter who has a similar approach as that of Kane Williamson, Malan wouldn’t be a bad choice.
The London-born cricketer had a phenomenal outing in the calendar years 2019 and 2020. He averaged nearly 70 and 50 in the respective years in international T20s. Malan is very strong against spin and has a batting average of 37 in India. He played five matches and notched up 148 runs with the highest score of 68.
In 2021, the 35-year-old was a part of the Punjab Kings franchise and had to sit out for most of the tournament. He was given an opportunity in just a single match where the Englishman scored 26 runs.
#2 Dasun Shanaka
Talk about all-rounders, they play an indispensable part in T20s. This is a good opportunity for the Titans to snap such an entity who can be crucial at various phases of the game with both bat and ball in hand. If these are the conditions, Sri Lankan white ball skipper Dasun Shanaka is the name that first strikes the mind.
Shanaka has the capability to change the momentum of a game on his will. With the blade in hand, he has amusing numbers against India in their home conditions. He smashed 74* and 47 at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in February 2022. Having stockpiled 343 runs in 13 innings, the all-rounder averages 38.11 and strikes at the rate of 1.5 runs per ball against India.
When it comes to bowling, the 31-year-old has a good variation in pace, adding some cutters to his armoury. He is not someone who would bowl express pace but would hit the right areas most of the time. Although GT has pace-bowling all-rounders in the form of skipper Hardik Pandya, Odean Smith, and Vijay Shankar, the Sri Lankan flavour would decrease the workload and add efficiency.
With a plethora of players turning out unavailable for various franchises, Shanaka would be one of the men on demand. The Titans need to snap the Sri Lankan great before they find him winning matches for some other franchise.
#1 Daryl Mitchell
The Kiwi batter can bowl a couple of overs as well for the Ahmedabad-based side
The New Zealand middle-order batter is one of the best possible investments that the Titans can make to replace Kane Williamson. Mitchell was an integral part of the 2021 T20 World Cup squad of the Black Caps and contributed immensely to their runners-up’s cause. His 47-ball 72 helped New Zealand to secure a victory against England in the semi-final and reach the ultimate stage of the mega event.
The 30-year-old has a compact technique against both pace and spin and has the ability to assess the situations and play the field. In addition, Mitchell can also use the long levers when needed.
Add some medium-pace bowling and that will act as the cherry on top for the Gujarat Titans. Mitchell represented the Rajasthan Royals franchise in 2022 but was under-utilized, playing only a couple of matches and scoring 33 runs.