Highlights IPL 2017, GL vs RPS in Rajkot, cricket scores and updates: Gujarat Lions pull off first win of tournament

Hat-trick hero Andrew Tye is named the Man of the Match!!

Third loss in a row for RPS. A win with 13 balls to spare is a huge win, which tells us that 170 was 30 runs short, not 10. The only positive really was the discovery of Rahul Tripathi as a credible opening option. But besides that, most of the changes they made to the XI did not give them the result required. 

After 18 overs,Gujarat Lions 172/3 ( Suresh Raina (C) 35 , Aaron Finch 33)

Ferguson brought back into the attack. Finch flicks the first ball straight to Imran Tahir, who puts it down at fine-leg, and allows the ball to run away to the boundary rope. SIX! Finch brings up the 50-stand in the following ball with a flick towards the leg side. 

SIX! Gujarat Lions win by 7 wickets! 

Finch flicks hammers the last ball of the over down the ground to bring up the team’s first win of the tournament after two devastating defeats.

After 17 overs,Gujarat Lions 151/3 ( Suresh Raina (C) 34 , Aaron Finch 14)

Thakur back into the attack, with Gujarat now looking positive on their path towards victory. Awkward slap by Finch towards the square-leg region after adjusting to the slower ball in the last minute. Five runs off the over, with the 150 coming up for Gujarat. 

Gujarat Lions need 21 to win from 18 balls.

After 16 overs,Gujarat Lions 146/3 ( Suresh Raina (C) 31 , Aaron Finch 12)

Tahir into his final over. Finch gets his second boundary with ideal use of the bottom hand, driving it through the covers to despatch it away with ease. Four more two deliveries later, this time Raina going for the inside-out shot. The GL skipper ends the over with a paddle towards the fine-leg boundary. The umpire signals for the second timeout. 

Gujarat Lions need 26 to win from 24 balls.

After 15 overs,Gujarat Lions 133/3 ( Suresh Raina (C) 23 , Aaron Finch 7)

Raina shows his class once again in the next over, timing his lofted drive over extra-cover to perfection to get his first boundary. Wide conceded in the next ball. The Gujarat captain ends the over with a punch towards the cover boundary, where the diving fielder fails to prevent the ball from crossing over. 

Gujarat Lions need 39 to win from 30 balls.

After 14 overs,Gujarat Lions 123/3 ( Suresh Raina (C) 15 , Aaron Finch 6)

Aaron Finch, the new batsman, paddles the third ball of the next over, which is Chahar’s third, towards the fine-leg boundary. Raina comes down the track and lofts the teenager over the wide long-on boundary tp show that his presence is still a threat for Pune. 11 off the over. 

Gujarat Lions need 49 to win from 36 balls.

Brilliant fielding is a strange phenomenon. It isn’t recorded anywhere in the scorebook, but it can have more of an impact than the runs and wickets that are counted. That piece of brilliance from the younger Chahar has kindled a mini recovery from RPS. It may not be enough to win this game, but moments like this can change a whole campaign.

After 13 overs,Gujarat Lions 112/3 ( Suresh Raina (C) 9 , Aaron Finch 1)

Tahir, who still is a major threat to Gujarat’s plans despite going for 35 off his first two overs, returns to the attack. Good running between the two batsmen in the first four deliveries, before Tahir deceives Karthik with a googly that the latter only chops onto his stumps. 

Gujarat Lions need 60 to win from 42 balls.

BOWLED EM! It’s the wrong un from Tahir, and it was only a matter of time before he struck. Karthik chops on to his stumps while looking for the cut to depart for 3. GL 111/3

Dinesh Karthik b Tahir 3(5)

After 12 overs,Gujarat Lions 107/2 ( Suresh Raina (C) 6 , Dinesh Karthik (W) 2)

Chahar, who pulled off a stunning fielding effort at fine third man, into the attack. The younger Chahar sibling removes McCullum first ball, shortening his length while looking to bring his half-century up in style with a strike down the ground. Another appeal for a stumping in the fifth ball, though new batsman Karthik’s foot was safely inside the crease this time. 

Gujarat Lions need 65 to win from 48 balls.

OUT! McCullum is stumped one short of his half-century, off Chahar’s bowling. Came down the track early, which prompted Chahar to reduce his length. The latter looks pumped up after the dismissal, which should boost Pune’s morale. GL 102/2

Brendon McCullum st Dhoni b Chahar 49(32)

After 11 overs,Gujarat Lions 102/1 ( Brendon McCullum 49 , Suresh Raina (C) 3)

Stokes back into the attack in the 11th over. Unbelievable effort by Chahar at fine third man. McCullum scooped this one over the keeper’s head, with the ball travelling high up in the air. Chahar reverse-cupped the ball after jumping over the rope, and threw it back in before landing on the other side. Stokes couldn’t help but appreciate the effort. Six off the over, with the 100 coming up for Gujarat in this over. 

Gujarat Lions need 70 to win from 54 balls.

You can see it in the expression on the RPS players faces. They are staring at another defeat. Even their trump card, Imran Tahir, has been clobbered. McCullum and Smith have almost finished the contest. Both teams went in with multiple changes, but such contrast in their fortunes. 

After 10 overs,Gujarat Lions 96/1 ( Brendon McCullum 45 , Suresh Raina (C) 1)
 

Ferguson brought back from the other end, and he bowls a tight one, with the final delivery of the over cramping McCullum for room after angling into him. Just two runs off an excellent over. Gujarat still a hot favourite for victory at the halfway mark at the moment. 

Gujarat Lions need 76 to win from 60 balls.

After 9 overs,Gujarat Lions 94/1 ( Brendon McCullum 45 , Suresh Raina (C) 0)

Thakur into his second over, under immense pressure at the moment given the way McCullum and Smith are going about business right now. Bowls a wide in the fourth delivery, before Baz mistimes his shot in the next delivery lobbing it over to the vacant are between mid-off and mid-on. Thakur though, manages to get rid of Smith in the penultimate ball to snap the opening stand six short of the 100-mark. 

Gujarat Lions need 78 to win from 66 balls.

OUT! Smith falls short of his fifty by 3 runs after guiding a slower ball from Thakur towards third-man. Just when these two were looking set for a 10-wicket victory with about four overs to spare, Thakur gets the much-needed breakthrough, they’re still a long way from home. GL 94/1

Dwayne Smith c Chahar b Thakur 47(30)

After 8 overs,Gujarat Lions 91/0 ( Dwayne Smith 46 , Brendon McCullum 44)

FOUR! Crunched away by Baz McCullum towards the wide long-on boundary off successive balls! The former New Zealand reaches out for the ball on both occasions, and connects beautifully. SIX! Baz comes down the ground, and lofts it straight into the sight stcreen. Single in the fourth ball, with Smith patting the fifth delivery down the ground for another boundary. Tahir in the middle of a nightmarish spell, conceding 35 from the two overs that he has bowled so far. 

Gujarat Lions need 81 to win from 72 balls.

After 7 overs,Gujarat Lions 71/0 ( Dwayne Smith 41 , Brendon McCullum 29)

Youngster Rahul Chahar into the attack in the seventh over. Tahir saves a couple of runs at deep point after a cut by Smith, although ‘Doctor’ gets the boundaries nevertheless — off successive deliveries in the fourth and fifth deliveries. 10 off the youngster’s first over. 

Gujarat Lions need 101 to win from 78 balls.

RPS had a good period towards the end of their batting innings, with Tiway and Ankit Sharma adding 47 in about five overs after Dhoni got out. This start from the Gujarat Lions has nullified that though. The personnel is different, but the result is the same for RPS: 60 runs in the first six overs again.

After 6 overs,Gujarat Lions 61/0 ( Dwayne Smith 31 , Brendon McCullum 29)

Imran Tahir, who has been something of a match-winner both for South Africa as well as for RPS, introduced in the final over of powerplay. Baz hammers back-to-back boundaries in the second and third balls, bringing  up the 50-stand. Comes down the track and reaches out for a slog towards long-on for a big hit! Dot to end the over, with Gujarat progressing at 10 per over at the moment. The umpire signals for the first timeout of the innings, with the Pune attack in desperate need of a huddle at the moment. 

Gujarat Lions need 111 to win from 84 balls.

A very similar start for the Lions to what we saw from Supergiant who got off to a great start before the wickets of Andrew Tye brought the Lions back into this. Dwayne Smith is back to the top of the order, where he should have been batting from the very start of the tournament, and that is paying dividends. All eyes are on Imran Tahir who needs to be in the wickets again if RPS are to win this game. 

After 5 overs,Gujarat Lions 46/0 ( Dwayne Smith 30 , Brendon McCullum 15)

Stokes into the attack, and he gets off with a variations straightaway. Cramps McCullum for room first ball, allowing him just a single, while firing a slower on two balls later. Excellent over by the New Zealand-born all-rounder, giving away just two off it.

After 4 overs,Gujarat Lions 44/0 ( Dwayne Smith 29 , Brendon McCullum 14)

Ferguson continues from the other end. Concedes a wide in the second ball after hurtling one down Smith’s leg side. Smith gets his fourth boundary by slicing a full delivery over gully. Superb delivery by Ferguson in the penultimate over, firing it into the blockhole. Another boundary to end the over, this time flicked by Smith towards the wide long-on boundary.

After 3 overs,Gujarat Lions 33/0 ( Dwayne Smith 20 , Brendon McCullum 13)

Shardul Thakur, playing his first game of the tournament, walks right in the middle of a carnge, with both Gujarat openers going hammer and tongs from the very start. Thakur cramps Smith for room in the first three balls, though Baz has no trouble hammering him towards the midwicket boundary. Looked like a dropped chance in the fifth ball, after McCullum hammered a low full-toss back to the bowler, who is wringing his hands after impact. Six off the over, a  much better one compared to the others.

Lockie Ferguson was the second bowler to take two wickets with his first two balls in T20Is after Michael Kasprowicz. 

After 2 overs,Gujarat Lions 27/0 ( Dwayne Smith 19 , Brendon McCullum 8)

McCullum and Smith looking in the mood. Adter a couple of dots, McCullum hammers it over extra cover. Smith then gets into the act and pulls one over square leg. 12 runs off the over. If these two get going then RPS bowlers are in some real trouble.

After 1 overs, Gujarat Lions 16/0 ( Dwayne Smith 15 , Brendon McCullum 1)

A blistering start from Smith. Smith he looked to go big off the first ball but got an inside edge over square leg. But then connected one cleanly to send it sailing over deep mid-wicket stands. He then punches it through covers for a four to end the over.

Back for the chase. Brendon McCullum and Dwayne Smith are the openers. Ankit Sharma will start off.

At Rajkot in IPL:

Matches – 6

Batting 1st won – 1

Batting 2nd won – 5

Andre Tye becomes the first bowler to take a five-for in the debut match in IPL. 

DYK: This is Andre Tye’s second hat-trick in 2017 in T20 cricket. His first was against Brisbane Heat v Perth Scorchers at Brisbane on 11 January, 2017.

What a dramatic finish to this innigns, but not a pretty sight if you are a RPS fan. The batters have had no reply to Tye’s knuckle ball, a delivery which we don’t see enough in international cricket. 171 is about 10 runs below what RPS would have wanted, but it is defendable. Pace off the ball was the mantra, and that is the policy RPS have used in picking their bowlers.

After 20 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 171/8 ( Lockie Ferguson 1 , Rahul Chahar 3)

Incredible last over by Tye, and he walks away with a haul of 4-0-17-5 on IPL debut — which should have been 6/17 had it not been for Jadeja dropping a catch near the midwicket boundary! What a day not just for Tye, but for IPL in general! And now we have a competitive game in hand. Tye will be hoping for the Gujarat batsmen to deliver on the occasion and not let his spell go waste, as was the case with that of Samuel Badree in the previous game. We’ll be back in some time.

Andre Tye becomes the first bowler to take a five-for in the debut match in IPL. 

Best bowling figures on IPL debut:

5/17 – ANDREW TYE*

4/11 – Shoaib Akhtar 

4/26 – Kevon Cooper

Bowlers with a hat-trick in IPL:

Lakshipathy Balaji, Ajit Chandila, Praveen Kumar 

Amit Mishra (3), Sunil Narine, Makhaya Ntini 

Axar Patel, Rohit Sharma, Pravin Tambe

Shane Watson, Yuvraj Singh (2), Samuel Badree, ANDREW TYE*

OUT! TWO HAT-TRICKS IN A DAY! How incredible is that! Knuckle ball from Tye, which Thakur fails to pick as he gets his leg-stump rattled! Oh what a day this is turning out to be! RPS 167/8

Shardul Thakur b Tye 0(1)

OUT! And now it is Manoj Tiwary’s turn to head back to the dugout, getting caught at deep square-leg while looking to go for an might pull! Tye on a hat-trick; RPS 167/7
 

Manoj Tiwary c Kishan b Tye 31(27)

OUT! Tye strikes once again, this time in his final over, as he gets rid of Ankit for 25.The southpaw looked to heave this one down the ground, and ended up getting a bottom-edge. Went up high in the air, and McCullum took a well-judged catch near the long-on boundary. RPS 167/6

Ankit Sharma c McCullum b Tye 25(15)

After 19 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 167/5 ( Manoj Tiwary 31 , Ankit Sharma 25)

Praveen starts the penultimate over with a wide down leg, before getting hit for a maximum towards the cow-corner boundary in th esecond ball. Quick double exchanged in the third delivery. Broken bat alert! Tiwary looks to play a fuller delivery from Praveen in the fourth ball, and it breaks in half as he goes for the shot. Continues running nevertheless, and dives at the striker’s end with whatever’s left of the handle while going for a second run. Just one over to go now.

MS Dhoni’s form is a real worry for RPS now. He has an average of 11 and a strike rate of 73 in the tournament so far and that isn’t good enough. Could we be close to the might MS Dhoni being dropped? 

After 18 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 155/5 ( Manoj Tiwary 29 , Ankit Sharma 16)

Tye back for his final over, and he will look to add a few more scalps to his kitty. Ankit collects a single at the start of the over to bring up the 150 for the team. Ankit tries to pull in the penultimate ball, only for his miscue to land just short of the fielder at long-on. Six off the over, with two overs left in the innings now.

After 17 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 149/5 ( Manoj Tiwary 26 , Ankit Sharma 14)

DROPPED! Tiwary comes down the track looking to hammer it down the ground, only for the ball to pop out of Jadeja’s hands at the other end. Was travelling quite fast though, in Jadeja’s defence. FOUR! Ankit gets the stroke right, and sends it down the ground this time. SIX! Tiwary connects majestically in the final ball of the over, sending it straight down ground for a big one. End of Jadeja’s spell, and barring Dhoni’s wicket, he has gone for quite a few runs this evening.

After 16 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 135/5 ( Manoj Tiwary 18 , Ankit Sharma 8)

Thampi into his third over. Tiwary is offered some room for a cut in the first ball of the over, and he happily obliges by going on the backfoot and getting his second boundary. Decent over for Pune with nine coming off it, and a couple of big overs from this point onwards could very well get them to a score that could be considered competitive.

Another huge wicket, with RPS under pressure to set a good target, and things not looking good for RPS. Nor for Dhoni, who has a third poor game on the trot, and really needed runs to silence the likes of Ganguly, who have questioned his international T20 credentials. I have to say, I’m in the Ganguly camp right now. 

After 15 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 126/5 ( Manoj Tiwary 12 , Ankit Sharma 5)

After getting hit for runs in his previous couple of overs, its a nice comeback for Jadeja after he gives away just six in this over while collecting the huge wicket of Dhoni. Ankit Sharma walks out to bat, and gets a boundary in just his second ball.

OUT! Jadeja traps Dhoni plumb lbw, and the latter continues to struggle in the ongoing tournament! Dhoni has a lot of detractors spewing venom against him, and his latest performance does nothing to shut them up. Was playing for the spin, except the ball straightened, and hit him on the back pad. RPS 120/5

MS Dhoni lbw Jadeja 5(8)

After 14 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 120/4 ( Manoj Tiwary 11 , MS Dhoni (W) 5)

FOUR! Jakati into his second over, and starts off by conceding a boundary to Tiwary. 10 off the over. Dhoni now looking to get into the groove, having struggled for the most part in the tournament so far. Pune need some quick runs if they are to get past the 170-run mark.

Smith’s dismissal was completely against the run of play, but the RPS batting line up looking more solid with Manoj Tiwary back after missing the last game due to his father’s death. Cant imagine how difficult it must be for him, sport seems so inconsequential in camparison.  

After 13 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 110/4 ( Manoj Tiwary 5 , MS Dhoni (W) 1)

Another effective over by Tye, in which he gets rid of the dangerous Stokes while giving away just four off it. Time for the second time-out, with the quick fall of wickets pegging the visiting team’s progress back.

OUT! Tye gets his 2nd wicket, castles Stokes with a slower ball! Was a knuckle ball from Tye, which the England all-rounder failed to pick, and ended up getting an inside-edge before a deflection off his pad.  RPS 106/4

Ben Stokes b Tye 25(18)

After 12 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 106/3 ( Ben Stokes 25 , Manoj Tiwary 3)

Smith continues from the other end. Bowls a shorter one down middle and leg, which allows Stokes to go for a pull towards fine-leg. Smith though, keeps it tight for the rest of the over, conceding just five off it.

Another makeshift opener has worked out at the IPL with Tripathi making an important 33. Steve Smith looked to be on for another big score but with him gone it is all eyes on two million dollar man Ben Stokes to get the Supergiant up towards a big score. He made an excellent fifty against Kings XI and he is halfway to another one here. The Lions bowling has been slightly better than in their first two games, but that isn’t saying much.

After 11 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 101/3 ( Ben Stokes 20 , Manoj Tiwary 3)

GL skipper Raina introduces himself into the attack after the departure of his RPS skipper. Stokes brings up the 100 with an outside edge that carries through the vacant slip region for a boundary. The English all-rounder retains strike for the following over with a hit down the ground, grabbing only a single.

After 10 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 92/3 ( Ben Stokes 13 , Manoj Tiwary 1)

The bowling change works for Gujarat as Dwayne Smith removes RPS skipper Steve Smith seven short of his half-century. Could’ve been a loss of concentation as well. Manoj Tiwary walks out to bat now ahead of MS Dhoni.

OUT! One Smith dismisses another, as Steve top-edges while looking to pull it, getting caught by Finch at long-on. Was pitched short and outside off, and Smith could not quite connect in this one. Falls short of his half-century by seven runs. RPS 89/3

Steve Smith c Finch b D Smith 43(28)

After 9 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 87/2 ( Steven Smith (C) 41 , Ben Stokes 11)

Jadeja into his second over. SIX! Beautifully connected by Stokes off a fuller delivery from Jaddu, depositing it over the midwicket boundary. 11 off the over, with RPS finding themselves in a good position as the umpire signals the first timeout of the innings.

After 8 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 76/2 ( Steven Smith (C) 38 , Ben Stokes 3)

OUCH! Smith in trouble in the penultimate ball of the eighth over, getting hit on the rib cage/sternum after missing a pull off a slower ball from Thampi. Stokes walks up to him to check if he is okay, and the Australian captain gets up in no time at all. Three off the eighth over.

The return of Ravi Jadeja and the introduction of Andrew Tye has slowed the run scoring for the Supergiant team, but they will be delighted with their opening seven overs that have seen them race along at 10 an over. The uber-dangerous Steve Smith are at the crease now. The two of them could do some serious damage. Lions need a few more wickets if they are going to keep RPS under 200. 

It’s not often that you upstage Steve Smith and make your team get over the loss of Ajinkya Rahane. Rahul Tripathi has repaid the faith that the team management has shown in him, and made the nation sit up and take notice. For all it’s dark underbelly, this is IPL’s saving grace: it is the stage for unknown players to make a mark. 

After 7 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 73/2 ( Steven Smith (C) 36 , Ben Stokes 2)

Jadeja bowls his first over of IPL 2017. Time-out yet to be signalled. After four singles in as many deliveries, Smith gets a bad delivery that is guided down the leg side, beating Praveen Kumar at short fine-leg. Nine off the over.

After 6 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 64/2 ( Steven Smith (C) 29 , Ben Stokes 0)

Andrew Tye introduced into the attack, with Smith and Tripathi hammering away at 11 an over at the moment. Overthrow in the third ball allows Tripathi to return for a second run. Tye finally gets rid of the fiesty Tripathi with a full delivery that the batsman holes out to mid-off. End of a superb powerplay for Pune, with Stokes now joining Smith at the centre.

OUT! Tripathi’s vigil comes to an end after he holes out to mid-off! What an over by Tye, bringing Gujarat back into the game after the side conceded far too many runs in the powerplay overs. RPS 64/2

Rahul Tripathi c Finch b Tye 33(17)

After 5 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 60/1 ( Rahul Tripathi 30 , Steven Smith (C) 28)

Jakati goes after Praveen in this over, hammering back-to-back sixes followed by a boundary in this over, bringing up the fifty-partnership for the second wicket in no time at all! Smith heaps further misery on Praveen, getting boundaries off the last two balls the senior pacer leaks 25 off the over. Unless a breakthrough is obtained, these two could very well run away with the game.

After 4 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 35/1 ( Rahul Tripathi 13 , Steven Smith (C) 20)

Jakati introduced into the attack in the fourth over, replacing Thampi. Smith greets him with a well-timed pull on the backfoot, before coming down the track to loft the left-arm spinner for his first six of the innings. Couple of singles exchanged in the last two deliveries, with 12 coming off the over.

After 3 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 23/1 ( Rahul Tripathi 12 , Steven Smith (C) 9)

Praveen starts off with a wide delivery that Tripathi despatches for a boundary towards sweeper point. The umpire goes upstairs in the third ball after a run-out appeal, though Tripathi made back to the non-striker’s end safely. Eight off the over, including a boundary, as Pune get some quick runs on the board after the Rahane blow.

Most ducks by openers in IPL:

10 – Gautam Gambhir 

8 – Parthiv Patel 

7 – Adam Gilchrist, Virender Sehwag, AJINKYA RAHANE*

After 2 overs,Rising Pune Supergiant 15/1 ( Rahul Tripathi 5 , Steven Smith (C) 8)

Kerala pacer Basil Thampi into the attack for the second over, and Tripathi greets him into the attack with a straight drive, getting off the mark in the process. Flick of the wrists by Smith at the end of the over to send it flying towards the vacant square-leg boundary.

Basil Thampi will share the new ball.

After 1 over, RPS 6/1 (Tripathi 0, Smith 4)

A very good start from Praveen Kumar. He got some early movement off the pitch and in the air and looked zippy. He got Rahane off the third ball with Raina pulling off a stunner. Smith, who walked out to bat at 3 looked to be aggressive. He got off the mark with a lovely straight drive. 6 runs and a wicket off the over.

Steve Smith v Ravindra Jadeja in IPL:

Balls – 39 

Runs – 34

Dismissals – 4

Average – 8.50  

SR – 87.18

Will Gujarat Lions bring in Ravindra Jadeja early today to stop Steve Smith?

Smith is the new batsman.

This is a massive game for Gujarat and the move to pick Andrew Tye as the first overseas makes a lot of sense after the local bowlers have taken just one wicket in the first two matches. Early wickets will have been there target as getting the late order hitters of the Supergiant in early will be a big advantage. And they have got just that with Praveen Kumar getting Rahane first ball. Let’s see if that brings about a change of fortune for the Lions. 

OUT! Raina pulls off a stunning catch. Rahane departs for a duck!

Praveen strikes early. What a brilliant catch from Raina. Rahane looks to cut but it tails back in sharply. Rahane gets an outside edge, Raina looks to got to his right but then changes his course, sticks his left hand out and plucks it out of thin air. He can’t believe it and nethier does any one.

Rahane and Tripathi are out in the middle. Praveen Kumar will start off.

RPS looks to have made some smart changes. When the pace is off the ball, they have been able to control the game, so they have played three spinners. Deepak Chahar’s younger brother Rahul, a leg spinner, comes in, along with Ankit Sharma. It’s a gamble, but Zampa wasn’t looking as sharp as he was last year.  

To bandage the limping pace department, they have opted for Kiwo tearaway Lockie Fergusson, who is fhe only express pace bowler in the squad. Mayank Agarwal has been left out, deservedly so it must be said. Will Rahul Tripathi, the only local boy in the Pune team, get to open?

RPS XI: Rahane, Smith, Tiwary, Stokes, Dhoni, Tripathi, Lockie, Ankit, Rahul, Tahir, Shardul.

GL XI: D Smith, McCullum, Finch, Raina, Karthik, I Kishan, Jadeja, P Kumar, Thampi, Tye, Jakati.

Most matches in IPL:

150* – SURESH RAINA*

147* – MS Dhoni*

146 – Rohit Sharma 

140 – Dinesh Karthik, Virat Kohli

138 – Robin Uthappa

Head to Head: (GL v RPS)

Matches – 2, GL won – 2, RPS won – 0

Rising Pune Supergiant team: Ajinkya Rahane, Steve Smith (c), Manoj Tiwary, Ben Stokes, MS Dhoni (wk), Rahul Tripathi, Callum Ferguson, Ankit Sharma, Rahul Chahar, Imran Tahir, Shardul Thakur.

It’s probably the match of the two weakest bowling sides in this IPL so far.  

RPS, besides Imran Tahir, have struggled in the bowling department, especially at the start and the end. Lions too have had a poor outing with the ball, so it will be interesting to see who comes out on top. 

RPS will breathing better with the return of Smith, without whom the batting seemed wafer thin. Gives you an idea of the psychological presence a player has, besides their runs.

Gujarat Lions team: Brendon McCullum, Aaron Finch, Suresh Raina (c), Dwayne Smith, Ishan Kishan (wk), Ravindra Jadeja, Andrew Tye, Shadab Jakati, Dhawal Kulkarni, Praveen Kumar, Basil Thampi.

TOSS: Gujarat Lions win the toss, and elect to field first.

Hello and welcome to the coverage of Gujarat Lions vs Rising Pune Supergiant in Rajkot. Match starts at 8 PM, follow this space for live scores and updates.