IPL 2022 final, GT vs RR: Samson elects to bat
Gujarat Titans face inaugural winners, Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the final of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 season. Titans have showcased that they are a highly competent side. RR are stacked with match-winners as well, in fact, some of the best in T20 cricket. The news from Ahmedabad is that RR skipper Sanju Samson has won the toss and elected to bat first.
Gujarat Titans (Playing XI): Wriddhiman Saha (wicket-keeper), Shubman Gill, Matthew Wade, Hardik Pandya (captain), David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Lockie Ferguson, Yash Dayal, Mohammed Shami. Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Sanju Samson (captain and wicket-keeper), Devdutt Padikkal, Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, Ravichandran Ashwin, Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna, Obed McCoy, Yuzvendra Chahal.
The Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad will host the final. The match will be telecast on Star Sports Network (8:00 PM IST) and live-streamed on the Hotstar app. Chasing sides have won three of the last five matches here. The wicket is likely to flatten as the game progresses, making it easier for the batters. Pacers can be backed to punch impressive numbers.
Gujarat Titans have a 2-0 lead over Rajasthan Royals in their head-to-head series. GT (192/4) beat RR by 37 runs in the league stage. Later, they stamped a seven-wicket win against Sanju Samson & Co. in Qualifier 1.
RR's Jos Buttler is the Orange Cap holder, having slammed 824 runs at 58.85. As per ESPNCricinfo, Sanju Samson (RR) has hammered 444 runs while striking at a laud-worthy rate of 147.50. In 15 innings, David Miller (GT) has smacked 449 runs at 64.14. The southpaw has struck at 141.19. Shubman Gill (GT) has clobbered 438 runs this season. He has struck four fifties.
As per Cricbuzz, RR have pummelled the most number of sixes in the season so far (133). Titans have won seven of their eight matches while chasing. Interestingly, the matches went down till the last over in all eight fixtures. Since 2011, Mumbai Indians are the only side to have won an IPL after finishing atop the league standings (2017, 2019, 2020).
