Gujarat Titans captain Hardik Pandya made a crucial change to his starting XI for the IPL 2022 final against Rajasthan Royals on Sunday.
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Debutant franchise Gujarat Titans locked horns with Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League 2022 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday after an enthralling run in the season. Gujarat Titans led by a first-time captain, became the first team to qualify for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 playoffs, before becoming the first side to qualify for the final on Tuesday. The Hardik Pandya-led side topped the group stage and became the first franchise to qualify for the playoffs with 10 wins and four losses which helped them accumulate 20 points and top the table.
Gujarat Titans started their IPL 2022 campaign with three wins on the trot — LSG, DC, PBKS — before registering their first loss against SRH. The newcomers, then, bounced back with five consecutive victories over RR, CSK, KKR, SRH and RCB respectively before going down fighting to PBKS and MI. The latter part of the lucrative tournament saw them clinch victories over LSG and CSK before losing against RCB in their last league encounter.
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The IPL 2022 final saw Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson winning the toss and opting to bat. His rival skipper Hardik Pandya was happy with the decision as he wanted to bat second anyway. Rajasthan Royals opted to play with the same XI in the final while Pandya made one crucial change as he brought in Lockie Ferguson in place of Alzarri Joseph. Ferguson could prove to be a handful for Gujarat Titans as the Ahmedabad wicket will provide pace and bounce. He will also add depth to their batting order.
“We will bat first. Looks like a good wicket, a bit dry and that’s why we’ll bat first, it’s a used wicket and might help our spinners in the second innings. We’re all positive and excited. Playing in front of this crowd is exciting. Same team for us,” Sanju Samson said at the toss.
“We would have bowled first. This is fantastic to see so may people coming to support us. We have the opportunity to be a hero and this is the time for us. It does help (qualifying early and having a break), calms your nerves down, we have focussed as a group, be as normal as possible and play our ‘A’ game. People of Gujarat are very loyal, very excited for it. We have one change – Lockie Ferguson comes in place of Alzarri Joseph,” Hardik Pandya said.
