Two teams at the two different ends of the points table will be sweating on the selection of two key players when they take on their respective opponents on another day of double-headers in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 on Saturday.
Table-toppers Delhi Capitals, who are coming off a thrilling win in Super Over against Rajasthan Royals in New Delhi, take on Gujarat Titans, who are placed third in the points table in a key match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. They will have to make a key decision on the availability of opener Faf du Plessis.
A day before the match, team head coach Hemang Badani refused to give any information about whether the South African batter will be available for their next match.
I genuinely cannot give you anything with regards to the team mix, whether he is ready or not, we will have to wait and see tomorrow.
Reflecting on the team's performance so far, Badani, in the pre-match press conference, said he was happy with his team's performance. "So far, we have had five good days, so sitting here, I am quite happy with the results that we have achieved. We are all happy, there is quite a bit of fun, banter, and laughter on the side, and we are all enjoying each other's company. It's very hot, but hope to have a good game tomorrow," he said.
Delhi Capitals have won five and lost one of their six matches so far and are currently placed at the top of the points table with 10 points.
Meanwhile, their opponents Gujarat Titans have won four and lost two in the six matches so far. They have a strong batting line-up, led by Sai Sudharsan and skipper Shubman Gill, and a potent bowling attack that includes Mohammed Siraj and Rashid Khan. They are coming into the match with a defeat to Lucknow Super Giants and will be hoping to bounce back to victory.
In five matches played between these two teams, Delhi Capitals have won three while Gujarat Titans have won two.
Rajasthan Royals sweat on Sanju Samson
In the other match of the day, to be played at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, Rajasthan Royals, who are placed eighth among 10 players, will clash with Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), hoping to win their third match of the season in their eighth outing.
But the winner of the inaugural edition will be sweating on the availability of their skipper Sanju Samson, who is doubtful because of a side injury.
Samson retired hurt after scoring 31 off 19 balls due to a suspected side strain during RR’s recent match against the Delhi Capitals on Wednesday.
Rajasthan Royals head coach Rahul Dravid said they are still awaiting the results of some scans.
"Sanju experienced a bit of pain in the abdominal area. So we have gone for scans. He has done some scans today so we are waiting for the results of those scans. And then once we get a bit more clarity around the scans and the severity of (the injury) we'll take a decision going forward and we'll see what happens," Dravid said in the pre-match press conference on Friday.
In case Samson is unavailable, Riyan Parag is likely to lead the side again, just like he did at the start of IPL 2025 when the regular captain was out with a thumb injury.
Samson is their second-highest scorer in IPL 2025 with 224 runs, behind Yashasvi Jaiswal's 233. His absence will put extra pressure on the middle order being marshaled by Dhruv Jurel and Riyan Parag.
Lucknow Super Giant are currently on eight points from seven matches. They lost their last match after three successive wins. Nicholas Pooran is the highest scorer for LSG so far with 357 runs from seven matches. He has a good partnership going with Michell Marsh, who has scored 295 runs from six matches. Shardul Thakur has turned out to be a match-winner for them with 11 wickets in seven matches while Digvesh Singh has nine.
Rajasthan Royals will face a tough time if any of these top guns get going in this match. Rajasthan Royals have won four of their five matches while Lucknow have won only one.
Probable playing XIs: Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (capt), B. Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, R Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
Delhi Capitals: Jake Fraser-McGurk, Abishek Porel, Karun Nair, KL Rahul (wk), Tristan Stubbs, Axar Patel (capt), Ashutosh Sharma, Vipraj Nigam, Mitchell Starc, Kuldeep Yadav, Mukesh Kumar
Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson (capt & wk), Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Sandeep Sharma, Akash Madhwal.
Lucknow Super Giants: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (capt & wk) , Ayush Badoni, David Miller, Abdul Samad, Shardul Thakur, Mayank Yadav, Digvesh Rathi, Ravi Bishnoi
