Indian T20 League 2022: Match 48 - Gujarat vs Punjab- Preview, Playing XIs, Pitch Report & Updates

The 48th encounter of the Indian T20 League 2022 will be played between Gujarat and Punjab. Mumbai's DY Patil Stadium will host the match on the 3rd of May. This will be the second encounter between the two teams. Gujarat had a comfortable six-wicket victory in their previous face-off. Hardik Pandya's Gujarat has played nine games in the season and has won eight of them. They currently are at the top of the points table. Punjab, on the other hand, has had a rough season. They are in the seventh position with four wins in nine games.

Team Updates

Gujarat

The Gujarat team has been the most consistent team this season. They are currently on a five-match winning streak and look in solid form. Even in most stiff situations, the team has not given up hopes and came up triumphs. David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, and Rashid Khan look in incredible form as finishers for the team.

The team, however, would want to get better results from the top and middle-order batters. They will need to perform better in order to keep the burden off the finishers. Gujarat is unlikely to make any changes to their winning combination in the upcoming encounter.

Players to watch out for

Hardik Pandya- Apart from the last two games, Hardik Pandya has done the bulk of the work for the team. In the eight innings, he has scored 308 runs at an average of 51.3. Batting at 3, Hardik is crucial for the team as he doesn't allow opposition to dominate the game, scoring quick runs.

David Miller- David Miller has taken on the duty of scoring quick runs in the lower middle-order and helping the team win games. He has  scored 276 runs at an average of 69 in nine games. He also has a respectable strike rate of 150.8. Miller has emerged as a great finisher for the team along with Rahul Tewatia.

Probable Playing XI

Shubman Gill, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Sai Sudharsan, Hardik Pandya (c), David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Pradeep Sangwan, Alzarri Joseph, Lockie Ferguson, Mohammed Shami

Punjab

The men in red have a great side at their disposal, but they have not had the best results thus far. The players have been inconsistent with their performances, which has cost them the matches. Liam Livingstone, who seemed to be in a great touch initially, has also fizzled out lately. He has had scores of 2, 19, and 18 in the last three games.

Key players like Mayank Agarwal, Shikhar Dhawan, Jonny Bairstow, and Kagiso Rabada have also blown hot and cold. These players have to come good if Punjab have to keep their playoff hopes alive.  In the next match, Punjab may look to make one change.

Players to watch out for

Kagiso Rabada- In the last game against Lucknow, Kagiso Rabada got a four-wicket haul. He is slowly getting back into rhythm which is a great sign for Punjab. So far, he has taken 13 wickets in eight games at an economy rate of 8.27.

Shikhar Dhawan- Shikhar Dhawan has scored 307 runs in the nine matches this season. However, his strike rate has been low, 126.33. Dhawan, however, is a player who can anchor the innings, with the likes of Livingstone and Bairstow playing aggressive cricket.

Probable Playing XI

Mayank Agarwal (c), Shikhar Dhawan, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Liam Livingstone, Harpreet Brar, Rishi Dhawan, Kagiso Rabada, Rahul Chahar, Sandeep Sharma, Arshdeep Singh

Pitch Report

The track at the DY Patil Stadium has lost it's pace in the past few games. This was inevitable with continuous cricket. The par score has come down as playing shots is not very easy now. The spinners are becoming very hard to score off. However, if batters can spend some time and get used to the pace of wicket, they can fetch some big runs.

Match Details

Date- 3rd May 2022

Time- 7:30 p.m (IST)

Venue- DY Patil Stadium, Mumbai

Broadcast- Star Sports Network, Disney+ Hotstar