As we are looking forward to the performance of Gujarat Titans in IPL 2023, there are 3 matters that we should take into consideration.
A Huge Capital and Strong Staff behind
Gujarat are one of the IPL’s two new franchises ahead of the 2022 season. They are owned by CVC Capital Partners, a British private equity and investment firm.
They are based at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. The stadium is the largest of any cricket ground in the world, with a capacity of 132,000 spectators.
And they have somes serious knowledge and experience among their background staff, too.
Former England batsman Vikram Solanki is the Director of Cricket, former Indian World Cup winner Ashish Nehra is the Head Coach and former South African run machine Gary Kisten is their Batting Coach and Mentor.
So you must see that Gujarat Titans actually prepared very well before they launched the journey of IPL 2022.
Of course Squad Matters
In IPL series 2022, Gujarat Titans was captained by India all-rounder Hardik Pandya. By the end of the season, they won the title by defeating the Rajasthan Royals (RR), who had also made huge progress through the season.
Gujarat Titans had different match-winners in the ranks of Rashid Khan, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Lockie Ferguson, Wriddhiman Saha and Shubman Gill. The Titans topped the points table with 10 wins in 14 games and remained undefeated in the IPL 2022 playoffs against Rajasthan Royals.
Bowling is the main strength of this Gujarat Titans squad as they focused on buying bowlers who are not only consistent but are wicket-takers. Fast bowlers such as Lockie Ferguson and Mohammad Shami can trouble batsmen and take wickets as well.
While spinners such as Rashid Khan and Rahul Tewatia are great for taking wickets while keeping the scores in control. Gujarat Titans also managed to get good batsmen as well as all-rounders. They bought some of the popular names in recent years such as Shubhman Gill and Jason Roy. Hard-hitting individuals such as Matthew Wade and Hardik Pandya are good additions to the franchise.
Who will be released before IPL 2023?
They might make a great hit in 2022, while there are also some possible adjustments to do for the next step. There are 5 players Gujarat Titans can release ahead of IPL 2023.
1.Varun Aaron
The 32-year-old right-arm pace bowler played the first two matches for the Gujarat Titans against Lucknow Super Giants and Delhi Capitals.
Aaron picked the wickets of Evin Lewis and Ayush Badoni in the first game but went expensive, leaking 45 runs from four overs.
2.Vijay Shankar
Shankar played just four matches for the IPL 2022 champions and warmed the bench for the rest of the season owing to poor form. The Tamil Nadu all-rounder managed scores of 4,13,2 and 0 in his four innings, averaging 4.75. He bowled just nine deliveries this season conceding 15 runs without any wicket.
3.Matthew Wade
The Australian wicketkeeper-batter amassed 157 runs in 10 innings at an average of 15.70 and a strike rate of 113.77.
Wade was preferred as Titans’ first-choice wicketkeeper ahead of Wriddhiman Saha. But Australia’s semi-final hero in T20 World Cup failed to repeat his spark for the Gujarat outfit in IPL 2022.
Wade scored 68 runs in the first five games and was subsequently benched with Saha replacing him in the playing XI. Saha’s brilliant run with the bat hinted Wade wouldn’t get an opportunity for the Titans.
However, the franchise reinstated the southpaw’s place in the team but at No.3, where he scored 89 runs in five innings. Wade’s best score was 35 against Rajasthan Royals in the Qualifier 1 game.
4.Gurkeerat Singh Mannn
Gurkeerat didn’t play for Gujarat Titans for the entire IPL 2022 as the franchise gave opportunities to youngsters like Shubman Gill, Abhinav Manohar and Sai Sudarshan to play ahead of the Punjab batter.
The 31-year-old has scored 511 runs in 32 IPL innings playing for Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bangalore.
He played his last game for RCB in IPL 2020 against Sunrisers Hyderabad in Sharjah.
5.Dominic Drakes
The 24-year-old pacer, who has played five T20I matches for West Indies, didn’t play a single game for the IPL 2022 winners.
With the presence of Lockie Ferguson and Alzarri Joseph in the Titans squad, Drakes’ chance of making the cut in the playing XI was a challenging task for the team management.
Drakes has claimed 23 wickets in 24 T20 matches at an economy rate of 9.39. He played a match-winning knock with the bat in helping St Kitts and Nevis Patriots win the CPL 2021 final. He scored an unbeaten 48 off 24 balls against St Lucia Kings to guide SNP to a three-wicket win in the final.
Will Hardik Pandya’s spark continue?
After IPL 2022, there’s one thing we must not forget. The key influence of winning was most credited to the captain Hardik Pandya, who successfully led GT the youngster of IPL in an inspired way. Although Gujarat Titans was considered to have an excellent squad, the teamwork will always be an examination of a cricket team.