Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans are ready to compete against each other in IPL 2023. The teams have only faced each other twice in previous IPLs, with both winning a game each.
Match 18 between the teams will be played in Mohali, with Hardik Pandya and Shikhar Dhawan leading PBKS and GT, respectively. Despite being in impeccable form, Shikhar has failed to help his team make a standout performance.
On the other hand, the Hardik-led team is performing well and outclassing the opposition with its bowling attack. In essence, the T20 cricket match will be a clash between PBKS’s batting and GT’s bowling attack.
As for fantasy cricket, Shikhar Dhawan will undoubtedly be the first pick on the top sites for cricket betting. The player is leading the competition as the highest run scorer with 225 runs in 3 matches. On the other hand, GT has three bowlers in the top five wicket-takers in the IPL 2023.
Both teams have defeated their opponents once each in the previous two encounters. However, this IPL is quite different due to a massive player swap in the competition. Both teams have won two of their three IPL 2023 matches thus far.
Even then, GT is ranked 4 on the points table with a net run rate of +0.431. On the other hand, PBKS is positioned at rank 6 with a negative NRR of 0.281.
Both teams are entering the match, having lost their previous games. PBKS lost their match against SRH by 8 wickets, and the sole standout for the team was Shikhar Dhawan’s 99-run inning.
Conversely, GT lost a nail-biting match against KKR where Rinku Singh hit five back-to-back sixes in the final over. Thus, GT will be a more confident squad while playing in Mohali’s IS Bindra Stadium.
While the teams have beaten each other while chasing, the pitch report for the IS Bindra stadium tells a different story. The stadium has produced more winners while batting first, so the toss winner is also expected to do so in Match 18.
PBKS won their previous game in the stadium, but it was only via the D/L method. Thus, the team will be looking forward to getting some retribution in the game against GT.
