IPL 2024: Gujarat Titans’s strongest predicted playing XI against Punjab Kings

Gujarat Titans. (Source -IPL)

Punjab Kings (PBKS)will be up against Gujarat Titans (GT) in the 17th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. The match is set to take place on the 4th of April 2024 at 7:30 PM (IST) at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Both the teams have had a contrasting journey in the league till now. While GT are placed in the top half of the points table, PBKS are placed in the bottom half of the table. As of now, GT and PBKS are in the 5th and 8th positions respectively in the ongoing league.

GT has played 3 matches and managed to claim two wins and a loss. With a net run rate of -0.738 and a total of 4 points to their name, the 2022 champions are placed decently in the points table. PBKS has played 3 matches and managed to win only one and lose two of their other games. They have a negative net run rate of -0.337 and a total of two points to their name. Both teams would be looking forward to winning the match.

In their last game, GT won against SRH by 7 wickets. On the other hand, PBKS suffered a 21-run loss to LSG. Both teams have some of the best players in the world. PBKS boasts of a good team that has some good players in their lineup like Shikhar Dhawan, Jonny Bairstow, Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma, Kagiso Rabada, Arshdeep Singh, and so on. GT has players who can match the strengths of the players from PBKS. That promises to be a good match between the two sides.

Here is the Predicted XI of Gujarat Titans for the match against PBKS in the 17th match of the IPL 2024:

Openers – Wriddhiman Saha (WK) and Shubman Gill (C)

Wriddhiman Saha will be the opener for GT alongside Shubman Gill. Saha can smash the bowlers for fun early in the innings, making the best use of powerplay overs. He can play aerial shots which are pretty safe early in the innings. Wriddhiman is an experienced campaigner and has played enough cricket at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. In addition to that, he will be the wicket-keeper, who is brilliant against both pacers and spinners.

At the other end, Shubman Gill will open the innings. The star batter was brilliant in the previous season where he amassed a whopping 890 runs. In the ongoing season, he is yet to make an impact with the bat. He would be hoping to return to form, come the game against PBKS. With the added responsibility of leading the side, it seems like Gill is under a bit of pressure. The home track might be the best option for him to score some runs at a good rate.

Middle Order – Sai Sudarshan, David Miller

To follow him would be Sai Sudarshan at number 3. The youngster has been the highest run-scorer for GT in each of their three matches till now. The Southpaw is known for anchoring the innings so that other batters can bat around him by going hard. The only drawback of Sai is that he plays a bit slow in the middle overs phase, which might put the batters at the other end in a bit of pressure. It is a good learning curve for the Tamil Nadu batter.

David Miller is the other pure batter in GT in the middle order. The Southpaw won the game for GT with his batting in the previous game. That would have given him some confidence considering his poor run as a batter in the first two games. On his day, Miller can win matches on his own. But in recent times, such instances have not been as often as he would have liked. The experienced batter will be key for GT to post a good total on the board.

All-Rounders – Vijay Shankar, Azmatullah Omarzai, and Rahul Tewatia

GT has some very good options in the All-Rounders department. In the middle order, they have two batting All-Rounders like Azmatullah Omarzai and Vijay Shankar. Omarzai has been good as a bowler in the three matches so far. The right-arm pacer has got the ball to swing. The Afghanistan player has managed to trouble the batters with his bowling. The concern is regarding his batting, as he has not yet dried with the blade in his hand.

Vijay Shankar has not had a good outing in the league so far. He is not been asked to bowl so far, but can step up if required. Given the nature of the wicket in Ahmedabad so far, GT would love him to be back amongst runs. Rahul Tewatia will continue to be at number 7. The finisher of GT has not been tested enough in the middle so far. The league is aware of his finishing skills but he needs to step up and help the side to finish the innings well.

Bowlers – Rashid Khan, Umesh Yadav, Noor Ahmed, Mohit Sharma, and R Sai Kishore

GT has a lot of options in the bowling department. Umesh Yadav and Omarzai are likely to operate with the new ball. Umesh can swing the ball away from the right-handers and can extract a bit of bounce off the surface. In the middle overs, GT has some good bowling options like Noor Ahmed, Mohit Sharma, Rashid Khan, and R Sai Kishore. Rashid needs to step up as a bowler. The star bowler is going for runs despite claiming wickets. He can step up as a batter.

Mohit Sharma is the designated death bowler for GT. To assist him at the other end would be Umesh and either Rashid, Kishore, or Noor with an over. In the middle overs, Noor and Kishore would be handy with their spin bowling. The wickets in Ahmedabad have helped the spinners so far. In addition to it, GT has some more options like Joshua Little, Kartik Tyagi, and Spencer Johnson, who can all be handy with their pace bowling.

Here is the Predicted XI of Gujarat Titans for the match against PBKS in the 17th match of the IPL 2024: 

Wriddhiman Saha (WK), Shubman Gill (C), Sai Sudarshan, Azmatullah Omarzai, Vijay Shankar, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmed, Umesh Yadav, and Mohit Sharma

Impact player – R Sai Kishore

Also Check: Gujarat Titans vs Punjab Kings Match Preview