Former Indian Test opener Aakash Chopra believes the two Powerplays will be the point of difference when RCB takes on GT in the first qualifier at Dharamshala on Tuesday. Chopra recalled that RCB’s pack leader Bhuvneshwar Kumar had rattled Jos Buttler’s stumps when the two teams earlier met in Ahmedabad.
Chopra said if Bhuvneshwar Kumar can dismiss two of GT’s top three batters – Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill, and Jos Buttler, then RCB will have their noses in front.
“The Powerplay will be extremely important for both teams. If Bhuvneshwar Kumar dismisses one of Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan, in fact, he even hit Jos Buttler’s stumps in Ahmedabad, he is that kind of a bowler who is also in good form currently and can use these conditions well, so if he dismisses two of the top three in the Powerplay, half the match will be in RCB’s grasp,” Chopra said on his YouTube Channel.
Similarly, the renowned commentator reckons the game will swing in GT’s favor if Mohammed Siraj and Kagiso Rabada can provide early breakthroughs in the Powerplay overs.
“The same is true for the Gujarat Titans. Everyone has opening pairs as batters, but they have opening two batters and opening two bowlers, and they are consistent. No one has managed the Powerplay more than them. It’s been eight or nine times that the two of them have together bowled six overs. So if they dismiss Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, and Devdutt Padikkal there, the game will change. So the Powerplay might actually decide which way this game would go,” Chopra observed.
Meanwhile, the former Delhi cricketer said Jason Holder and Prasidh Krishna will test Rajat Patidar with short deliveries in the middle overs.
“Rajat Patidar will come in the middle order. His performance has been brilliant. He hits a lot of sixes. He hits a six every sixth or seventh ball in the middle overs, which is the best in the league, but Jason Holder and Prasidh Krishna will be there in front of him,” he said.
The cricket analyst reckons Prasidh Krishna will hold the key for Gujarat Titans in Dharamshala.
“The Gujarat Titans go with a five-pronged pace attack. The fifth is Arshad Khan, and Rashid Khan is the sixth bowler. So their bowling is just incredibly deep. If someone has a bad day, a backup is already ready for him, and many times they don’t bowl a bowler at all. Prasidh Krishna will be very crucial on this ground. I think it should be a great game,” Chopra observed.
Both RCB and GT have won one match against each other earlier in the season.
