There was no fuss at the toss in Ahmedabad: Gujarat Titans skipper Shubman Gill looked at the grass, thought about the evening dew and said, “we’ll have a bowl first”. Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s stand-in captain Rajat Patidar shrugged, replied that he’d have batted anyway and reckoned the surface wouldn’t help the quicks “too much”. Both elevens stay as they were last time out.
Key facts
• Titans choose to chase on what Gill believes could be a slightly greasy outfield later on.
• Phil Salt remains injured, so Jacob Bethell partners Virat Kohli at the top for RCB.
• No place for Prasidh Krishna or Ashok Sharma in Gujarat’s starting line-up; left-armer Arshad Khan keeps his spot.
• Rahul Tewatia and Rasikh Dar are the obvious Impact-Sub options for the two sides.
• A third straight victory would lift RCB to the summit of the table.
The immediate intrigue centres on that green tinge. Gill hopes his seamers—Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj and Arshad—can squeeze some early swing from it. “If it does a bit now, chasing later becomes simpler,” he noted. Patidar, though, feels stroke-making will get easier rather than harder: “Once the lacquer’s off, I don’t think it’ll assist bowlers too much.”
Team news analysed
• Titans stick with the blend of three frontline quicks plus Rashid Khan’s leg-spin.
• Jason Holder’s all-round overs offer flexibility if conditions change mid-innings.
• RCB again bank on experience: Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal and Tim David form the spine, while Josh Hazlewood leads the attack.
• Rasikh Dar, with his skiddy new-ball style, is the likeliest to replace a batter when Bengaluru bowl.
Impact Substitute rules allow one tactical change after the toss; expect Tewatia’s hitting or Dar’s seam to be deployed as required.
Full XIs
Gujarat Titans: Gill (capt), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Jason Holder, M Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Arshad Khan, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Manav Suthar.
Impact Subs: Rahul Tewatia, Glenn Phillips, Anuj Rawat, Nishant Sindhu, Kulwant Khejroliya.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru: Kohli, Bethell, Padikkal, Patidar (capt), Jitesh Sharma (wk), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Josh Hazlewood.
Impact Subs: Rasikh Dar, Jordan Cox, Mangesh Yadav, Vicky Ostwal, Venkatesh Iyer.
So, another evening under the lights at Motera: if Gill’s hunch about the dew is right, Titans start with the edge. If not, RCB’s top order has an opening to make it three on the bounce.
