IP 2023 Predictions: PBKS vs GT

Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Gujarat Titans (GT) will lock horns in Match No.18 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023.

The game will take place on Thursday, April 13 at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali.

Punjab Kings, led by Shikhar Dhawan, began their IPL 2023 journey with two consecutive wins.

After beating KKR by seven runs (DLS), they beat Sanju Samson’s Rajasthan Royals (RR) by five runs.

However, the Kings tasted their first defeat after losing to Aiden Markram’s Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight wickets in their third match.

GT also won their opening two games against CSK and DC comfortably. But KKR handed them an expected three-wicket defeat at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad in their third match.

Rashid Khan became the first bowler to pick up a hat-trick in IPL 2023, but his efforts went in vain.

With KKR needing 28 runs off the last five balls, Rinku Singh went berserk and hit fast bowler Yash Dayal for five sixes in a row.

As a result, KKR romped home off the last ball.

Pitch and venue information

There is no sign of rain. The temperature is expected to be 30 degrees Celsius and the humidity to be 34%.

The average score for the team batting first (1st innings) is 170.43.

This suggests that the pitch at this stadium is likely to be conducive to batting, with teams posting decent totals in the first innings.

The average winning score for the team batting first (1st innings) is 185.33.

This implies that if a team posts a total of around 185 or more, they have a good chance of winning the match.

A total of 14 IPL matches have been played at this stadium. The team batting first won 42.86 of the matches and the second team won 57.14% of the matches.

Key players

Hardik Pandya missed the last game due to flu and it’s possible that he’ll skip today’s match too.

For GT, leg-spinner Rashid han has been sensational and picked up eight wickets from three games at an average of 11.75.

Shubman Gill began this season against Chennai Super Kings with a superb knock of 63 runs off 36 deliveries. In his 3 games, Gill has scored 110 runs with a strike rate of 147.14 and can be a key player today.

Sai Sudarshan has been a revelation with 137 runs in 3 matches. Also, he has shown great composure in testing conditions which bodes well for GT.

For PBKS, Shikhar Dhawan has been their talisman with an astounding 225 runs in 3 matches. If Dhawan holds up one end, PBKS have a strong chance of posting a big total.

Arshdeep Singh has bagged 6 wickets in 3 matches and is close to his best. However, their big buy, Sam Curran is struggling with just one wicket in 3 matches.

The PBKS batters like Jitesh Sharma and Shahrukh Khan need to start firing or else, the Punjab side might squander their strong start to IPL 2023.

Head-to-head record

Played: 02 | PBKS won: 01 | GT won: 01 | No result: 0

PBKS possible XI:

Shikhar Dhawan (c), Prabhsimran Singh, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Shahrukh Khan, Sam Curran, Sikandar Raza, Nathan Ellis, Harpreet Brar, Rahul Chahar, Arshdeep Singh

GT possible XI:

Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Vijay Shankar, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Abhinav Manohar, Rashid Khan (c), Mohammed Shami, Alzarri Joseph, Yash Dayal

Who will win

PBKS will be on their home ground and will have the crowd rooting for them.

Despite this, they don’t look like a balanced side as their batting lineup is not showing signs of being consistent.

Over-reliance on Dhawan and the inability of their bowlers to hit top form could hurt them.

GT look like a more well-rounded unit and could emerge on top.