AThe first match of the Indian Premier League 2023 will be played between the defending champions Gujarat Titans and four-time winner Chennai Super Kings on March 31 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Hardik Pandya, who led Gujarat to glory in his first season as captain in the IPL last year, will face one of the most successful captains in the history of Indian cricket, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, who will lead Chennai Super Kings.
Shedding light on last year’s performance of both teams, Gujarat Titans won the IPL 2022 title. Meanwhile, the previous edition was a nightmare for the Men in Yellow as they finished 9th in the points table. However, Chennai bought several top guns across the globe in the latest auction and are rated to be a strong contender to win the title. Meanwhile, Gujarat has not made big changes to their squad but have one of the most balanced teams in the IPL.
Also, CSK dealt a heavy blow ahead of the opener, as there were reports that MS Dhoni would miss the first game due to a knee niggle, but their CEO ruled out such media articles and stated that the former India skipper would lead the side against Gujarat. Although in case MSD fails to play, the defending champions will have the upper hand in the game.
Chennai has a strong batting line-up, with Ravindra Jadeja, Ben Stokes, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Mitchell Santner, and Dwayne Pretorius, who can single-handedly turn the tide of the match. However, with Mukesh Choudhary out, Deepak Chahar is the only big name in their fast-bowling department. On the other hand, Gujarat has several explosive batters, and with the help of Shubman Gill, David Miller, Hardik Pandya, Rahul Tewatia and Matthew Wade, the team from the west can exploit Chennai’s weaknesses in the first match itself.
Head-to-Head
The two teams faced each other twice in IPL 2022, and Gujarat won both games. The Hardik Pandya-led side won the first tie by three wickets while emerging victorious in the second match by seven wickets.
Pitch Report
Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will host the first game, and the ground has big boundaries. Here the batter would struggle to play big shots, so more focus will have to be on singles and doubles. The team batting first must out at least 180 on the board. 160-170 runs can be chased easily by the team batting second. The pitch will help the spinners. In such a situation, batsmen need to be careful while playing big shots.
Weather condition –
According to a weather.com report, the weather will be absolutely clear on Friday. There will be no disturbance in the match. Light wind speeds reaching 12 kmph are expected in the city in the evening.
When, where and How to watch the match?
You can watch the live telecast of the match between Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings on Star Sports Network channels in different languages on TV. At the same time, for OTT viewers, this match will be streamed on the Jio Cinema app and website. On Jio Cinema, you can enjoy the game for free on any network SIM.
Probable XI
Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill, Matthew Wade (wk), Kane Williamson, Vijay Shankar, Hardik Pandya (c), Odion Smith, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Shami, Shivam Mavi, Yash Dayal.
Chennai Super Kings: Ruturaj Gaikwad, Devon Conway, Ambati Rayudu, Moeen Ali, Ben Stokes, Ravindra Jadeja, MS Dhoni (wk/c), Dwayne Pretorius, Deepak Chahar, Simarjeet Singh, Prashant Solanki
Squads
Gujarat Titans: Hardik Pandya (c), Rashid Khan (vc), Rahul Tewatia, Shubman Gill, Mohammed Shami, Shivam Mavi, Joshua Little, Yash Dayal, David Miller, Sai Kishore, Abhinav Sadrangani, Alzarri Joseph, Matthew Wade, Kane Williamson, Wriddhiman Saha, Jayant Yadav, Vijay Shankar, KS Bharat, Odion Smith, Mohit Sharma, Noor Ahmed, Urvil Patel, Pradeep Sangwan, Darshan Nalkande, Sai Sudarshan.
Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Captain), Devon Conway, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Ambati Rayudu, Subhranshu Senapati, Moeen Ali, Shivam Dube, Rajvardhan Hangergekar, Dwayne Pretorius, Mitchell Santner, Ravindra Jadeja, Tushar Deshpande, Mukesh Chowdhary, Mathisha Pathirana, Simarjit Singh, Deepak Chahar, Prashant Solanki, Mahesh Thikshana, Ajinkya Rahane, Ben Stokes, Sheikh Rashid, Nishant Sindhu, Kyle Jamieson, Ajay Mondal, Bhagat Verma.
