It’s only 2 years ago that Hardik Pandya led the Gujarat Titans (GT) to glory in the Indian Premier League (IPL). But come 2024, he is back to where he started his career, the Mumbai Indians (MI). This time, Hardik is the skipper after he replaced colossus Rohit Sharma, who captained the franchise to 5 IPL titles in 2013, 2015, 2017, 2019 and 2020.
Hardik is set to be up against his former team, the Titans, as MI start their campaign on Super Sunday at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. From 2015 to 2021, Hardik played for MI and tasted a significant amount of success. But leading the team will come with its own set of challenges.
Suryakumar Yadav is set to miss the first few games for MI after the NCA refused to give him clearance. Suryakumar hasn’t played any form of cricket since the T20I series against South Africa last year.
IPL 2024 Full Coverage
The Titans have had their worries after their premier fast bowler Mohammed Shami, who also won the Purple Cap last year, was ruled out due to injury concerns. In his absence, the onus will be on the likes of Umesh Yadav and Kartik Tyagi to take care of the Indian pace contingent.
As far as GT are concerned, Shubman Gill has a massive task on his hands. Having not captained an IPL team, the pressure will be on the youngster from Fazilka to deliver. He won the Orange Cap last season after scoring nearly 900 runs, and it remains to be seen how he steps up with the added responsibility of captaincy.
Probable XIs
Gujarat Titans
Shubman Gill (c), Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Sai Sudharsan, Vijay Shankar, David Miller, Azmatullah Omarzai, Shahrukh Khan, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad, Kartik Tyagi, Umesh Yadav
Mumbai Indians
Rohit Sharma, Ishan Kishan (wk), Tilak Varma, Tim David, Hardik Pandya (c), Nehal Wadhera, Romario Shepherd, Gerald Coetzee, Jasprit Bumrah, Shreyas Gopal, Piyush Chawla
Yashasvi Jaiswal to keep rocking?
Before MI and GT face, Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) and Rajasthan Royals (RR) will be up against each other at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.
The focus will be on Yashasvi Jaiswal, who has been in the form of his life. Jaiswal recently scored over 700 runs in the Test series against England and has had the Midas Touch.
Last year, Jaiswal smashed the fastest-ever fifty in the IPL against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). He also broke a 15-year-old set by Shaun Marsh back in 2008. Jaiswal scored the most runs by an uncapped player in a single season of the IPL.
Yuzvendra Chahal is another cricketer who will be in the limelight. The leg-spinner is the all-time leading wicket-taker in IPL history. Earlier, the Royals lost Prasidh Krishna due to an injury, after which he was replaced by Sandeep Warrier.
The Super Giants, on the other hand, have KL Rahul back as their skipper. Rahul will be making his comeback after recently missing 4 out of the 5 Tests against England due to a quadriceps injury.
In both their seasons, LSG crashed out after playing in the Eliminator. Devdutt Padikkal moved to the Super Giants after playing a couple of seasons with the Royals.
Krunal Pandya and Marcus Stoinis add a lot of firepower to their middle order. Shamarh Joseph is set for his maiden stint in the IPL after Mark Wood, who took a 5-wicket haul against the Capitals last season, was ruled out.
Shivam Mavi and Mohsin Khan are 2 of their brightest young talents. Ravi Bishnoi is their leading spinner.
Probable XIs
Rajasthan Royals
Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (c) (wk), Rovman Powell, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Riyan Parag, Ravi Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Trent Boult, Sandeep Sharma/Avesh Khan
Lucknow Super Giants
KL Rahul (c), Quinton De Kock (wk), Devdutt Padikkal, Nicholas Pooran, Krunal Pandya, Marcus Stoinis, Deepak Hooda/Ayush Badoni, Shivam Mavi, Shamarh Joseph, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohsin Khan.
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