Make or break for RCB towards Gujarat Titans
Big Picture: Make or break for RCB
It all boils right down to the ultimate 4 hours. After 69 video games throughout 52 days, the final league match will determine the identification of the fourth crew within the playoffs.
The highlight is on Royal Challengers Bangalore as they return house to the Chinnaswamy to host the Gujarat Titans after practically a month on the street. They will know precisely what they want to qualify in the top four if web run price turns into an element, however the easiest route is to win. If they make it, it will likely be their fourth successive playoff look.
So what is going on properly for RCB? They are coming into this important fixture off two successive wins – towards Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals. Their energy is their batting, having scored greater than 180 in three of their final 4 video games. More particularly, it’s their top-order batting, with Faf du Plessis (702), Virat Kohli (538) and Glenn Maxwell (389) doing the majority of the run-scoring. The dependency on their Big Three may very well be a vital consider a crunch recreation.
Winning on the Chinnaswamy additionally hasn’t been easy for RCB this season. While a number of groups have struggled to maximise their house benefit, it is 3-3 for RCB in Bengaluru this 12 months, and 40 wins in 83 video games general.
So whereas RCB have all the pieces to do to qualify for the playoffs, the Titans are already by means of. Hardik Pandya’s crew is simply the second facet to complete prime of the desk in two successive seasons, after the Mumbai Indians in 2019 and 2020.
Team news: Will Titans relaxation gamers?
Fast bowler Josh Little had missed a couple of matches to play an ODI collection for Ireland towards Bangladesh, however he re-joined the Titans squad on May 16. Vijay Shankar had additionally missed the earlier recreation after getting hit within the nets. With Titans already by means of to the playoffs, the large query is whether or not they’ll relaxation any of their gamers, contemplating they play Qualifier 1 on May 22.
Du Plessis mentioned on the toss of their earlier recreation towards Sunrisers that certainly one of Hasaranga and Hazlewood was lacking because of a niggle with out specifying who it was.
The huge query
Should RCB usher in Hasaranga for Bracewell?
0 votes
Form information
RCB WWLLW (final 5 accomplished video games, most up-to-date first)
Gujarat Titans WLWWL
Impact Player technique
Anuj Rawat saved wickets for RCB as an alternative of Dinesh Karthik within the final two matches and he’s anticipated to do it once more towards Titans. Karthik or Mahipal Lomror may sub out and in for for left-arm spinner Shahbaz Ahmed relying on whether or not they bat or bowl first.
Royal Challengers Bangalore (possible XII): 1 Virat Kohli, 2 Faf du Plessis, 3 Glenn Maxwell, 4 Mahipal Lomror, 5 Dinesh Karthik, 6 Michael Bracewell, 7 Anuj Rawat (wk), 8 Wayne Parnell, 9 Karn Sharma, 10 Harshal Patel, 11 Mohammed Siraj, 12 Shahbaz Ahmed
Titans had swapped Shubman Gill with quick bowler Yash Dayal of their earlier recreation towards SRH. If Little returns, Gill and Mohit Sharma may very well be their Impact Players relying on whether or not they bat or bowl first.
Gujarat Titans (possible XII): 1 Shubman Gill, 2 Wriddhiman Saha (wk), 3 Sai Sudharsan, 4 Hardik Pandya (capt), 5 David Miller, 6 Abhinav Manohar/Vijay Shankar, 7 Rahul Tewatia, 8 Rashid Khan, 9 Josh Little, 10 Noor Ahmad, 11 Mohammed Shami, 12 Mohit Sharma
Pitch and circumstances
Bengaluru has been scorching and humid this week and a few spells of rain is probably going on Sunday. The common first-innings whole on the Chinnaswamy Stadium is 194, so count on a run-fest.
Stats that matter
Srinidhi Ramanujam is a sub-editor with ESPNcricinfo