As Gujarat Titans take on Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 2 of the Indian Premier League at the Mullanpur stadium on Friday, there is only one question on everyone’s mind. Will GT’s bowling line-up be able to keep Vaibhav Sooryavanshi quiet?
GT’s bowling attack, led by their potent pacers, was considered among the most feared this season, before it was smashed into submission by Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s captain Rajat Patidar in Qualifier 1 in Dharamsala.
Having finished in the top-two in the league phase, GT will get another shot at reaching the final. But standing in their way are a surging RR, who knocked Sunrisers Hyderabad out of the tournament with a big win thanks to the heroics of Sooryavanshi.
It was evident from their training session that GT’s plans revolved around Sooryavanshi. GT head coach Ashish Nehra was seen having a discussion with pacer Prasidh Krishna and spinner Sai Kishore at the edge of the pitch where the game will be played on Friday.
The pitch, adjoining the track where 439 runs were scored on Wednesday, looks to be a dead track. The trio spent a good 30 to 40 minutes discussing how to bowl into the body of a left hander. Taking a left hander’s stance, Nehra was seen asking the duo to bowl close to the chest of the batter in order to not give any room.
In the nets, Australian great Matthew Hayden was giving tips to the batters, while spin coach Ashish Kapoor was sharing some tips with two wrist spinners on getting full advantage of the pitch.
In the previous outing between the two teams, Mohammed Siraj did get the better of Sooryavanshi with the short ball after being smashed for a six. Kagiso Rabada was also dispatched by Sooryavanshi. Siraj and Rabada have provided the early breakthroughs for the Titans, but handling the high-on-confidence Sooryavanshi will be a challenging task.
“I am feeling good about the way he is batting. Hopefully, we will try to take him out early in the game. As all the teams are planning, we have seen the videos. Hopefully, we will be able to execute our plan. But what it is, we will be able to tell you when we are on the ground,” said Titans’ batting coach Parthiv Patel.
“He has been a phenomenal talent, just the way he has been playing. It’s great to see. From the opposition’s point of view, we hope that he doesn’t get going tomorrow,” he added.
Sooryavanshi has been dismissed off the short ball multiple times and probably that is one area the Titans would like to target him.
The Royals would have to look beyond Sooryavanshi if the teenager fails to fire. By captain Riyan Parag’s own admission, the Royals should have reached 260 on Wednesday but had an inexplicable collapse in the death overs. They would surely want to improve on their finishing skills.
The Titans, on other hand, will also bank heavily on their top-three — Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler. The Royals will once again want Jofra Archer’s magic to stop the top-order trio. The middle order does not inspire a lot of confidence but runs from Rahul Tewatia in the last game were among the few positives they would carry into Qualifier 2.
