IPL 2022 1st Qualifier Gujarat Titans vs Rajasthan Royals: 3 key contests to watch out for

IPL 2022 is down to the first qualifier of the tournament. Hardik Pandya’s Gujarat Titans (GT) will face Sanju Samson’s Rajasthan Royals (RR). Gujarat lost its previous match against RCB but it has also won one match against Rajasthan earlier in the tournament.

For Rajasthan, the terrific forms of Yuzvendra Chahal, Ravichandran Ashwin and Jos Buttler have brought them to the number two spot in the points table. They have now emerged as a side that can beat any team in the tournament.

The team that wins today will cement their place for the finals which will be held at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on May 29.  The losing team today gets another chance and plays another qualifier against the team that wins the eliminator.

Here we look at three key contests in today's qualifier:

SHUBMAN GILL VS JOS BUTTLER                    

Both Shubman Gill and Jos Buttler are premium batters for their teams and a good knock from them can give their an upper hand in the match.

Buttler, who has been outstanding with the bat this season, has a big challenge today to get the better of likes of Mohammad Shami and Rashid Khan. Buttler has scored 629 runs in 14 matches at an average of 48.38 this season.

Gill, on the other hand, has not been able to perform to his full potential. Apart from a few matches where he got some big knocks, Gill has been inconsistent this season. He has scored 403 runs in 14 matches at an average of 31. Today, he has to face the likes of Prasidh Krishna, Yuzvendra Chahal and Trent Boult.

RASHID KHAN VS YUZVENDRA CHAHAL

In the spin department, it will be a battle between leg-spinner Rashid Khan and wrist spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. Chahal has emerged as a star player this tournament who also holds a hat-trick to his name. He is also the holder of the purple cap.

But Rashid, who has clinched 18 wickets in 14 matches so far, has also delivered with the bat. He has played some match-winning knocks for Gujarat.

For Chahal, getting the wickets of Gill, Hardik Pandya and Rahul Tewatia would be crucial, as these players can change the course of the match in no time.

HARDIK PANDYA VS SANJU SAMSON

It’s captain vs captain. Both the cricketers have surprised the fans with their performances in this IPL. While Hardik led a newly-constructed team to the number one position, Samson took an underdog team to the second spot.

With the bat, both have been decent, but Hardik has an upper hand over Samson. In 14 matches so far, Hardik has score 413 runs at an average of 41.30 while Samson could only 374 runs at an average of 28.77.

In all, Gujarat looks to have an upper hand against Rajasthan in today’s match. The match starts at 7:30 pm from Eden Gardens, Kolkata.