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Last season's finalists Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Gujarat Titans (GT) will battle it out against each other in match number 48 of the ongoing IPL 2023 at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Friday, May 5.
Rajasthan suffered a heartbreaking six-wicket loss to Mumbai Indians (MI) in the previous encounter of the season. They failed to defend an imposing 213-run total.
With five wins from nine games, Sanju Samson and Co. currently occupy fourth place in the points table. A win in their forthcoming contest will help them break into the top two.
Gujarat also faced defeat in their previous match. The Hardik Pandya-led side weren't able to chase down Delhi Capitals' (DC) 131-run target, losing the game by five runs.
The defending champions, however, have emerged as the team to beat. They are placed comfortably at the top of the standings, having won six out of their nine matches. GT are the only team with 12 points in their kitty at this juncture.
This will be the second time that these two teams will lock horns this season. GT and RR earlier clashed at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Rajasthan chased down a tricky target of 178 runs in thrilling fashion, eking out a three-wicket win.
The upcoming fixture featuring the two star-studded teams also promises to be a high-octane affair. Here, we look at three match-ups that could have a major impact in the upcoming RR vs GT game:
#3 Yashasvi Jaiswal vs Mohammed Shami
RR opener Yashasvi Jaiswal has been an intent merchant for the team. The southpaw has got his team off to a flying start by taking on the bowlers in the powerplay on multiple occasions.
The youngster made headlines with his sensational 124-run knock against Mumbai in his previous appearance. With 428 runs from nine games, Jaiswal is the second-highest run-getter in the competition.
However, the swashbuckling batter will face an imposing challenge this time around, as he will have to negate GT's pace bowling spearhead Mohammed Shami.
Shami has been exceptional for his team, especially with the new ball. The veteran fast bowler has picked up 17 wickets in nine games, 12 out of which have come in powerplay. He is also the Purple Cap holder.
The contest between the two in-form players is bound to enthral the onlookers and could also very well dictate the course of the match.
#2 Sanju Samson vs Rashid Khan
RR skipper Sanju Samson started off the tournament on a promising note. However, there has been a form slump for the keeper-batter, and he will be hoping to make amends by delivering a big knock.
Samson has adopted a counter-attacking approach against spin bowlers this season. While he has achieved decent success while doing so, it has also proved to be the reason for his downfall on certain occasions.
The last time the two teams squared off, Samson took GT's star leg spinner Rashid Khan to the cleaners. He completed a hat-trick of sixes against the crafty bowler and ended up scoring 60 runs from just 32 balls.
Rashid will be eager to win the battle against Samson this time around by removing him early.
#1 Trent Boult vs Shubman Gill
Left-arm pacer Trent Boult has provided his team with big breakthroughs with the new ball in a number of matches in this year's IPL. The Kiwi bowler has 10 wickets to his name from seven appearances.
Boult has bagged seven scalps in the powerplay overs, and he will be skipper Sanju Samson's best bet against GT's opening batter Shubman Gill.
Gill has been the top performer with the bat for his team so far, mustering 339 runs from nine games at an average of 37.66. He has crossed the 50-run mark thrice.
