IPL 2022, GT vs DC: Explosive captains take centre stage in Gujarat Titans-Delhi Capitals clash

Rishabh Pant - will lead Gujarat Titans and Delhi Capitals respectively, hoping to get the better of each other at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune on Saturday. While left-arm spinner Axar Patel and all-rounder Lalit Verma rescued the Capitals from a precarious position to chase 179 with 10 balls remaining in their opening game, the Titans were grateful to the lower-order hitting from David Miller, Rahul Tewatia and Abhinav Manohar to scrape past Supergiants in their debut clash.

The Titans bowling unit, which restricted a strong Supergiants line-up to 158, will have their work cut out against Prithvi Shaw and co. Shaw and New Zealander Tim Seifert will be expected to provide the opening impetus before Mandeep Singh and Rishabh Pant look to make amends for missing out in the opening match. Rovman Powell will be another player the Capitals would bank on to provide the late surge. Mohammad Shami had a dream spell against Supergiants, and along with New Zealand pacer Lockie Ferguson kept the run-scoring in check. Captain Hardik Pandya bowled four overs while leggie Rashid Khan seemed subdued in his first outing for his new franchise.

The duo, alongwith another Indian discard Varun Aaron, will need to complement Shami and Ferguson to keep the Capitals at bay. Though the drops didn't hurt much, the Titans will need to sharpen up their fielding. It is the batting of Titans which currently looks to be their weakest link. All eyes will be on opener Shubman Gill, whose irresponsible shot against the Supergiants put additional pressure on a weak middle-order. Pandya batted with ease for his 33 in the first match, and he, along with Vijay Shankar, Tewatia, Miller and Manohar will be looked upon to provide the