Gujarat Titans will cross paths with Chennai Super Kings in ‘Match 29’ of the 2022 Indian Premier League season at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium on Monday. Gujarat Titans are occupying pole position in the standings whereas Chennai Super Kings are second from the bottom.
Gujarat Titans have had a fantastic campaign so far in what is their debut Indian Premier League season. Hardik Pandya’s men have won four of their five matches and are the only team to have lost only a solitary match so far.
On the other hand, four-time champions Chennai Super Kings have not had a good start to their season. They have won only one of their five matches and will need to embark on a winning spree if they want to climb up in the points table.
What have they done so far?
Gujarat Titans started their journey in IPL with four consecutive wins. They defeated fellow newbies Lucknow Super Giants by five wickets in their first match and then followed it up with a 14-run win against Delhi Capitals.
Pandya’s team handed Punjab Kings a six-wicket defeat in their third match, but their winning streak was ended by Sunrisers Hyderabad in their fourth match. That being said, the Titans bounced back well and registered a 37-run win against Rajasthan Royals in their previous outing.
Chennai Super Kings lost their opening encounter against Kolkata Knight Riders by six wickets, while the margin of defeat was exactly the same in their second match against Lucknow Super Giants. In their third match, Ravindra Jadeja’s men were handed a 54-run drubbing by Punjab Kings.
The Yellow Army failed to offer much resilience in their fourth fixture as well where they suffered an eight-wicket defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad. However, the defending champions finally opened their points tally in their last fixture where they registered a 23-run triumph against a formidable Royal Challengers Bangalore side.
Head to Head Record
This will be the first meeting between Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans and hence, head-to-head records are not in question. Both sides will be looking to get one up on this particular rivalry by winning this match.
Key Players
Shivam Dube played a sensational knock during CSK’s last match against RCB
Hardik Pandya: Pandya has not only established himself as a fine leader, but he is also delivering consistency with both the bat and the ball. He is currently Gujarat’s leading run-scorer with 228 runs at an average of 76, whilst the local lad has also scalped four wickets. The 28-year-old’s best performance came in the last match against Rajasthan Royals, where he scored 87 runs and also picked up a wicket.
Shivam Dube: Pandya has not only established himself as a fine leader, but he is also delivering consistency with both the bat and the ball. He is currently Gujarat’s leading run-scorer with 228 runs at an average of 76, whilst the local lad has also scalped four wickets. The 28-year-old’s best performance came in the last match against Rajasthan Royals, where he scored 87 runs and also picked up a wicket.
Predicted Playing XI
Gujarat Titans: Rahmanullah Gurbaz (wk), Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Hardik Pandya (c), David Miller, Abhinav Manohar, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Lockie Ferguson, Mohammed Shami, Yash Dayal.
Chennai Super Kings: Robin Uthappa, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Moeen Ali, Ambati Rayudu, Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja (c), MS Dhoni (wk), Dwayne Bravo, Chris Jordan, Maheesh Theekshana, Mukesh Choudhary.
Prediction
The Chennai Super Kings side will be confident after finally opening their points tally, but if we compare the overall balance and form of these two sides, it is quite clear that Gujarat Titans hold the upper hand. Hence, we have predicted the league leaders to add two more points to their account.