Venue: Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium, Pune
Time: 7:30 PM IST
Average score at venue (1st inns): 210
Win percentage while batting first: 100%
Pitch conditions:
- Rajasthan showed others the way how they should go about their business at this venue, which has plenty of runs for batsmen as well as wickets for those fast bowlers who are not going to make mistakes with their line and lengths.
- Fast bowlers will have to have pinpoint accuracy in order to get returns from the surface which saw Rajasthan notching up a total in excess of 200 in the only match played so far here.
- In return, Rajasthan fast bowlers ran through Hyderabad top-order by putting their deliveries in the right areas, something that will encourage the fast bowlers who will be in action to replicate on Saturday night.
- The pacers have a wicket share percentage of 76.92% compared to the spinners who have got 23.08% of the wickets here.
Weather prediction:
It will be a bright and clear day in Pune on Saturday with the temperatures hitting an extreme of 39°C in the afternoon around 3:00PM local time whereas that the mercury will drop down to 26°C towards the heading stages of the contest. The humidity levels will rise sharply from 30% at the start of the contest beyond 60% by the end of the game.
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD (overall):
Matches played: -
Gujarat won: -
Delhi won: -
No result: -
Top 3 players from Gujarat: Matthew Wade, Rahul Tewatia, Mohammad Shami
Top 3 players from Delhi: Axar Patel, Lalit Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav
Top picks for H2H/WTA contest (top 5 players each):
Top 5 players from Gujarat: Matthew Wade, Rahul Tewatia, Mohammad Shami, David Miller, Hardik Pandya
Top 5 players from Delhi: Axar Patel, Lalit Yadav, Kuldeep Yadav, Prithvi Shaw, Rishabh Pant
Q & A:
Fantasy tips and tricks: Should I pick more bowlers, batsmen or all-rounders?
Adding more to the batting strength will be the right approach for making a fantasy cricket playing XI ahead of the contest between Gujarat and Delhi at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune. Rajasthan made more than 200 in the first match here and won by 61 runs against Hyderabad, indicating that batsmen can dominate the bowling if they get their line and lengths wrong. Both Gujarat and Delhi have exciting talents at their disposal and would look to build on their winning momentum, having recorded impressive victories in their opening matches of the tournament. Gujarat will have to be wary of the firepower and experience that Delhi bring in the contest, since the debutant team have what can be described as a frail batting line-up which features Hardik Pandya in the middle order.
Fantasy tips: From which team should I pick more players in my XI? Which team is stronger?
Delhi have been one of the most improved teams in the Indian T20 Cricket League 2022, having featured in the knockout rounds in the past few seasons and playing an aggressive brand of cricket under the tutelage of Australian cricket legend Ricky Ponting. In their first match, Delhi found unlikely heroes in Lalit Yadav and Axar Patel get over the finish line against Mumbai — a feat that will certainly give them a lot of confidence going deeper into the tournament with some of their key players such as Mustafizur Rahman, Sarfaraz Khan and Lungi Ngidi set to join their squad. On the other hand, Gujarat displayed incredible determination to get their first victory against Lucknow, but they must know that the challenge will be different against a team as robust and experienced as Delhi, who are the stronger side and should have more players featuring in the fantasy cricket playing XI.
MORE INFORMATION: It is still early days in the Indian T20 Cricket League 2022 and teams are yet to have their preferred players in the squad available for selection. Delhi are currently grappling with the fitness issues concerning Australia's World Cup winner Mitchell Marsh and South Africa fast bowler Anrich Norjte, who has been a vital cog in the Indian T20 Cricket League 2022 team. Delhi have also been without dashing opening batsman David Warner, who has been in Australia after the conclusion of the series in Pakistan. Warner should be linking up with the Delhi side soon and be seen in the playing XI after completing his three-day mandatory hard quarantine.
PLAYERS’ FORM: Gujarat will be keen to have their batsmen hitting top form as they anyway do not have a lot many options to pick from. Shubman Gill and Vijay Shankar had a forgettable outing with the bat in the first match but they will be expected come good against Delhi on what will be a favourable batting surface in Pune. For the Rishabh Pant-led team, it will be vital for the likes of Prithvi Shaw and Tim Seifert to provide with another strong start and Mandeep Singh to get some crucial roles in the middle order. As per the last match, Lalit Yadav and Axar Patel will be counted among players Delhi will look up to.
Changes in squad (if any): NO
LIKELY XIs:
GUJARAT: Shubman Gill, Matthew Wade (wk), Vijay Shankar, Abhinav Manohar, Hardik Pandya (c), David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Varun Aaron, Lockie Ferguson, Mohammad Shami
DELHI: Prithvi Shaw, Tim Seifert, Mandeep Singh, Rishabh Pant (c&wk), Rovman Powell, Lalit Yadav, Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur, Kuldeep Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed, Kamlesh Nagarkoti.
FANTASY XI: Prithvi Shaw, Shubman Gill, Matthew Wade, Rishabh Pant (wk), Lalit Yadav, Axar Patel, Rahul Tewatia, Mohammad Shami, Kuldeep Yadav, Khaleel Ahmed, Lockie Ferguson.
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Gujarat’s batting in focus against formidable Delhi
Even though they came out on top in their dogfight against the other new team of the Indian T20 Cricket League 2022 Lucknow, the Hardik Pandya-led Gujarat had their moments of concerns particularly with the bat.
With two specialist all-rounders, and not specialist batsmen occupying the important slots of Nos 3 and 4, Gujarat are wanting to go the distance in this tournament — an approach which is high risk-taking given that there are far more superior and organised squads in the competition.
Hardik Pandya batted at No 4 for Gujarat — an extremely vital position in any batting line-up being filled by a specialist all-rounder who has, for most of his career, batted lower in the order for both Mumbai in this competition and for India in international circuit.
Tamil Nadu all-rounder and India discard Vijay Shankar also has a lot to prove at No 3.
While Gujarat managed to emerge victorious in their contest against Lucknow which was their first in the tournament, their batting will face a stern challenge against a formidable Delhi, who are coming off an impressive victory themselves, beating Mumbai in the first match of the tournament.
Delhi found unlikely heroes with the bat in all-rounder Lalit Yadav and Axar Patel who added 75 runs for the sixth wicket to power them to a narrow 4-wicket victory after they were left struggling at 104/6 chasing more than 175.
Delhi will certainly take a lot of heart from their performance against Mumbai in which they kept fighting right until the end and emerged with a desired result. Apart from Lalit Yadav and Axar Patel, Chinaman bowler Kuldeep Yadav and left-arm seamer Khaleel Ahmed impressed as well.
Kuldeep impressed with a superb spell of 4-0-18-3 to press the importance of left-arm leg spin whereas Khaleel used all his experience to make an impressive start for his new franchise.
Delhi will want their openers Prithvi Shaw and Tim Seifert to continue with the good show and their middle order batsman Mandeep Singh and Rishabh Pant to get a few runs after they both failed in the first match.
The availability of Mumbai run machine Sarfaraz Khan can also be a big factor going into this match, with the right-hander being a dominant run-maker in the image Indian domestic circuit for the last few seasons.
Among the overseas players, Delhi will have fast bowlers Lungi Ngidi and Mustafizur Rahman available for selection while they continue to wait for the availability of dashing opener David Warner, who is likely to replace Seifert once he links up with the team.
