Preview: M39 - RPS vs GL
What
Rising Pune Supergiant will take on the Gujarat Lions will come up against each other in Match 39 of VIVO IPL 2017.
RPS have had a surge in the last fortnight and have established some kind of a momentum; Steven Smith’s team have won 4 of their last five matches and have a total of 5 wins from 9 matches this season. In their most-recent match, they thrashed RCB; after posting a par score, they restricted the visitors to 96-9. This match presents RPS with an opportunity to establish a clear lead over other contenders for the fourth playoff spot. RPS will be faced with a tricky situation with regards to their selection; Ben Stokes, who missed the previous match because of an injury, is reportedly fit and available. It will be interesting to see if they bring him straight back, and if they do, who do they leave out.
The Gujarat Lions must be gutted that they couldn’t finish well in the previous match against the Mumbai Indians. Suresh Raina’s team did extremely well to drag the match to the Super Over, but despite the presence of two destructive batsmen – Brendon McCullum and Aaron Finch – the Lions fell well short of the 12-run target in the one-over bash. The have only three wins from nine matches this season, and the time is now for them to start piling on the wins and get climbing up the standings.
The Lions have had problems with their bowling, and their problems have been compounded further with their leading wicket-taker Andrew Tye being ruled out of the rest of the season with a dislocated shoulder. How does that forced change impact the make-up of their XI, and what bearing will it have on the result remains to be seen.
When
01 May 2017, 2000 Hrs IST
Where
MCA Stadium, Pune
The Protagonists
Despite the presence of Steven Smith – who has been in sparkling form – and MS Dhoni, who has contributed cameos at crucial junctures, the two players who have actually made telling contributions to RPS are Rahul Tripathi and Manoj Tiwary. Tripathi has batted beautifully at the top and has given his team quick starts in the last six matches; he is the only batsman to make six consecutive scores of 30 or more this season. Tiwary meanwhile has taken his chances and despite being used in a variety of positions, he has made runs almost every time he has walked out to bat.
If you find the names of Brendon McCullum and Suresh Raina in any team list, they will be the most important batsman in that line-up. The former is due for a big score after three consecutive single-digit dismissals. Raina is the team’s top run-getter; though the Lions skipper has made 310 runs, he will be disappointed that he has got past the 50-run mark only twice and will be keen to get a big one.
Match within the match
Even though they’ve only come up against each other on a handful of occasions, Brendon McCullum holds the bragging rights against Imran Tahir. The Gujarat Lions batsman has scored 38 runs off the 15 balls the leg-spinner has bowled to him in the IPL.
Head to Head
Overall: Matches played – 3, Rising Pune Supergiant Won – 0, Gujarat Lions Won – 3
In the most-recent encounter between the two teams – at the SCA Stadium in Rajkot earlier this season – the Lions restricted RPS to 171-8 and then chased down the runs in 18 overs. Andrew Tye was the standout performer in the match; the Australian collected five wickets on IPL debut – which included a hat-trick – and walked away with the Man of the Match award.
Trivia
The Gujarat Lions are the only team to have lost more wickets to the spinners than quick bowlers; they have lost 26 wickets to spinners as against 21 wickets to pacers.
The Gujarat Lions have batted first on four occasions this season and have ended up on the wrong side on each of those four occasions.
Adam Zampa is currently Rising Pune Supergiant’s highest wicket-taker with 14 wickets. Imran Tahir (13 wickets in 9 matches) needs two more wickets to climb ahead of Zampa’s tally.
What Next
For Rising Pune Supergiant: Return fixture (Away) Vs. Kolkata Knight Riders, May 3
For Gujarat Lions: Return fixture (Away) Vs. Delhi Daredevils, May 4