Newbies Gujarat Titans, Lucknow Super Giants take IPL by storm

With the T20 World Cup scheduled later this year, this edition of the IPL is going to be the major selection trials

If one was asked to put his/her money on potential play-off contenders before this season’s Indian Premier League commenced, the bets most likely would have been placed on big dogs like Chennai Super Kings and Mumbai Indians. The former are four-time defending champions and have made it to the knockouts in all but one edition of their participation while the latter are record five-time winners.

With the business end of the tournament approaching, things have changed dramatically though. While Mumbai suffered a record eight successive losses and opened their account only on Sunday, Chennai, following a horrendous start, is perched just one spot above their great rivals (before RCB vs CSK match on Wednesday).

However, two teams who have lit up the tournament and stand on the threshold of sealing knockout tickets are the newbies — Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants. With personnel delivering for them every time when the chips are down, the two have displayed the spirit Mumbai and Chennai have done in the past and it will take some doing for others to stop their juggernaut.

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To provide a level-playing field for the new entrants, the IPL gave the new entrants the option of picking a maximum of three players of their choice from the existing teams provided the players were also in sync. Both the teams were smart with their draft picks before going into the auction. Gujarat went with all-rounder Hardik Pandya (captain), leg-spinner Rashid Khan and Shubman Gill while Lucknow picked KL Rahul (captain), all-rounder Marcus Stoinis and leggie Ravi Bishnoi. All six have had a great impact on their respective teams' progress.

They were quite smart in their auction as well, building well-rounded squads around the core set-up. Once that was taken care of, it was about performing on the field.

Gujarat, under the leadership of an easy-going Hardik, has been the talk of the town with their never-say-die attitude and exhilarating victories. All-rounder Hardik, who lost his place in the Indian team before the IPL due to his inability to bowl full tilt following the recurrence of a back injury, had a point to prove in the glitzy event and he has set the tempo for his team.

With the T20 World Cup scheduled later this year, this is going to be the major selection trial and he has delivered in an impressive fashion. He has led from the front, promoting himself to No. 4 and is the leading run-scorer (309) for his team. He has excelled with the ball too, constantly sending down 2-3 overs with a decent economy rate of 7.56 runs an over besides taking four wickets. His captaincy style has also been effective without being authoritative and that has got the team going.

David Miller, who hitherto struggled for consistency in the IPL, has found that finally, scoring 287 runs while young and talented opener Subhuman Gill has given the team some good starts.

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The real star for Gujarat has been the finisher Rahul Tewatia. The ice-cool southpaw, once mocked at by Ricky Ponting in Delhi Capitals, has emerged as one of the most dangerous batters this IPL with no situation out of hand for him. He smacked two successive sixes off the last two balls to help Gujarat pull off an incredible coup against Punjab Kings, forged a brilliant 59-run stand with Rashid Khan in a sensational come-from-behind win against Sunrisers Hyderabad and did a similar act in the company of Miller against Royal Challengers Bangalore.

In short, Gujarat looks like a well-oiled unit now. Batters in fine form and striking well over 150, three-strike bowlers with an economy below 8 and a lower middle-order with match-winning abilities, are a real deal at the moment.

Like Gujarat, Lucknow has been led from the front brilliantly by KL Rahul (451 runs). The elegant right-hander, one of the most technically sound batters in world cricket, has smashed two centuries and an equal number of half-centuries. Often found guilty of making a slow start, Rahul has been taking his time to settle down but has been striking at 145.

Rahul has found an able partner in Quinton de Kock, the South African who has provided the team with some good starts. With middle-order batters like Deepak Hooda and Krunal Pandya constantly providing an impetus to those fine starts, the team is looking solid on the batting front.

In the bowling department, Lucknow has been served well by pacer Mohsin Khan and gifted leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi. Mohsin has played only four games but following his superb starts, expect Lucknow to field him constantly henceforth. Bishnoi has been expensive but has provided breakthroughs whenever the team has needed it.