GT vs RR, IPL 2022 Qualifier 1 preview: Titans face upbeat Royals with eye on direct entry into 'home' final

The final week of the 2022 Indian Premier League (IPL) is well and truly underway and following the conclusion of the league stage in Maharashtra on Sunday, it’s time for the caravan to move east with the playoffs starting in Kolkata on Tuesday.

The first of the knockouts will witness the two sides finishing on top of the IPL 2022 points table locking horns at the iconic Eden Gardens with Gujarat Titans taking on the second-placed Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 1.

The benefit of finishing in the top two, of course, is that while the winner gets a direct entry into the final, the loser gets a second shot at qualifying for the summit clash as they take on the winner of the Eliminator — the knockout match featuring the third and fourth-placed teams on the points table.

The Titans are off to a flying start in their debut season, having finished on top of the table after registering 10 wins in 14 games, including five victories in a row. And the Hardik Pandya-led side will certainly have an eye on playing in front of their home crowd at Motera in the final.

Rajasthan, among the original eight franchises in the IPL, had won the inaugural edition in 2008 under Shane Warne’s captaincy but haven’t really achieved the kind of consistency associated with some of the more successful franchises such as Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings.

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The Sanju Samson-led side though would’ve rekindled memories of their victorious run 14 years ago with the kind of performances produced this season; with the Royals winning nine out of 14 games and finishing ahead of the Lucknow Super Giants, who were occupying the second spot for the longest time, courtesy of Net Run Rate.

Star Watch:

Hardik Pandya:

There were doubts over the junior Pandya sibling’s own form with the bat, his ability to throw down a few overs and his leadership credentials — and boy has he silenced his critics on all those fronts in style while leading the Titans in their inaugural season.

Not only has Pandya stood out as a leader, with Gujarat finishing on top of the points table with 10 wins from 14 games, but Hardik appears to have rediscovered his old touch as an explosive middle-order batter as well as a finisher, a role he used to excel at back when he was part of Mumbai Indians’ golden generation. The Gujarat skipper is the leading run-scorer for his side, collecting 413 runs at a fine average of 41.30 while also sending down a little over 24 overs of medium pace.

Jos Buttler:

Jos Buttler was in blistering form in the first half of the season, smashing three tons along with three fifties, and at one point was looking set to break Virat Kohli’s record for most centuries in a single IPL (and even his legendary 973-run feat).

The Englishman’s form, however, has tapered off in the second half with the opener collecting just 63 runs in the last five outings. That does not, by any means, lessen the threat that he poses to the Gujarat attack when he walks out to open on Tuesday evening. Buttler is due a big score and he will hope to bounce back to form and help Rajasthan secure a direct entry into the final.

Uncapped watch:

Rahul Tewatia:

After a couple of successful seasons for the Royals in 2020 and 2021 in which he pulled off a number of memorable heists, Tewatia has now consolidated himself as a tried-and-tested finisher in the Gujarat middle-order this season.

The Haryana all-rounder may not have a half-century to his name this season but continues to show remarkable composure in tense situations and has been part of some of the most thrilling climaxes. Tewatia was instrumental in securing two last-ball wins for Gujarat, including one against PBKS in which he smashed back-to-back sixes off Odean Smith when 12 were needed off 2.

Yashasvi Jaiswal:

The young opener from Mumbai was benched after a couple of single-digit scores early in the season, and did not feature in the XI for more than a month but has made a solid comeback into the side since his inclusion for the game against Punjab Kings on 7 May.

Jaiswal has since racked up 187 runs in four outings at an average of 46.75 with two half-centuries and has helped make up for the lack of runs scored off Buttler’s bat in Rajasthan’s recent games. Having repaid the faith shown in him by skipper Samson as well as the team management, Jaiswal will be entering the first playoff full of confidence, eager to make a solid statement against the Shami-led GT attack.

Squads:

Gujarat Titans: Hardik Pandya (c), Varun Aaron, Dominic Drakes, Lockie Ferguson, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, Alzarri Joseph, Abhinav Manohar, David Miller, Mohammed Shami, Darshan Nalkande, Noor Ahmad, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Rashid Khan, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), R Sai Kishore, Sai Sudharsan, Pradeep Sangwan, Vijay Shankar, Shubman Gill, Rahul Tewatia, Matthew Wade, Jayant Yadav, Yash Dayal

Rajasthan Royals: Sanju Samson (c, wk), Anunay Singh, Ravichandran Ashwin, Corbin Bosch, Trent Boult, Jos Buttler, KC Cariappa, Yuzvendra Chahal, Shubham Garhwal, Shimron Hetmyer, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Dhruv Jurel, Obed McCoy, Daryl Mitchell, Karun Nair, James Neesham, Devdutt Padikkal, Riyan Parag, Prasidh Krishna, Navdeep Saini, Kuldeep Sen, Tejas Baroka, Rassie van der Düşsen, Kuldip Yadav

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