Gujarat Titans vs Punjab Kings - IPL 2022 Match 48: Who Will Win?

Gujarat Titans Team Preview

The two newbies to the IPL 2022 have certainly shaken up the competition. It is, of course, extremely daunting to enter an established competition and find your footing, however they have made it look incredibly easy. They have both become formidable teams to compete against, showcasing impressive and memorable performances. The Gujarat Titans are absolutely living up to their name. Their strong performances have netted them a historical eight wins from nine games with a Net Run Rate of +0.377. No other team has managed to get more points from nine games than the Titans - what a way to make an entrance! This of course gives them 16 points, as well as the top spot on the leaderboard. They are well on their way to the Play-Offs that begin in the last week of May.

The bowling department did a reasonable job at taking steady wickets. Pradeep Sangwan took two while conceding 19 runs for an impressive economy of 4.75. Mohammed Shami, Alzarri Joseph, Rashid Khan, and Lockie Ferguson all grabbed a wicket each. Respectively, the bowlers conceded 39 runs, 42 runs, 29 runs, and 36 runs. This means that in their four overs spells, Joseph was the only player to have an economy over 10.

Turning our attention to the batters, the Titans had a decent score to chase of 170 and made it look fairly easy. All the batters put on a decent show, apart from a quick dismissal for skipper Hardik Pandya after just 5 balls and 3 runs. Wriddhiman Saha scored 29 runs off 22 balls, Shubman Gill finished with 31 from 28, and Sai Sidharsan 20 from 14. However, it was David Miller (39 off 24) and Rahul Tewatia (43 runs off 25 balls) who managed to turn the Titans’ game plan into a winning one. They added 79 runs in their partnership which took them over the winning line. Tewatia was awarded Player of the Match for his measured and confident batting.

You might be considering online cricket betting to turn up the action for this match. We have our eyes on Tewatia for the top batsman market as he has been fairly consistent with his batting in the tournament so far.

Punjab Kings Team Preview

The Punjab Kings are having a bit of a tough time, and currently sit in seventh place. Their four wins from nine matches gives them eight points, and a Net Run Rate of -0.470. They will need to pull their socks up and start to get a winning streak on if they want to make it to the Play-Offs. Now, with just five matches remaining, the Kings will have to call on a miracle to get enough points to give them a good footing into one of the four Play-Off spots. However, that’s not all they need to think about. Their Net Run Rate will come into consideration if more than one team finished on 14 points, so the Kings will need to increase this throughout their last five games.

The Lucknow Super Giants handed them a defeat by 20 runs in Match 42. With a fairly low score to chase (153), a win seemed on the cards for the Kings. However, the Super Giants showcased a superb bowling display which kept the Kings’ momentum to a minimum. Despite the top batters of the Kings, Liam Livingstone, Shikhar Dhawan, and Mayank Agarwal, getting off to a good start, they all failed to develop any further and respectively finished 18 off 16, 5 off 15, and 25 off 17. Jonny Bairstow scored the most runs of the batters (32 off 28 balls).

The Kings put on a fairly good bowling display and managed to (almost) keep their economy under 10. Kagiso Rabada grabbed four wickets in his four overs spell, however, he conceded 38 runs for an economy of 9.50. Sandeep Sharma was the most economical bowler finishing 1/18 (4.50). Rahul Chahar took two wickets in his bowling spell while conceding 30 runs.

If you are making a match prediction today, check out our recommended IPL betting sites for the best odds. Although Dhawan struggled in the last match, he is currently joint 5th for most runs scored in this season of the IPL at 307. Hopefully, Dhawan will be ready to lead the attack against the Titans.

Toss Prediction

We are seeing a few more captains going against the grain and electing to bat first after winning the toss. The Gujarat Titans were the first team to choose to bat first in Match 35, however, this was an afternoon game where the threat of dew is minimal. The Punjab Kings have been fairly unlucky with the toss, winning only twice. They have been consistent by electing to bat second both times. As this is an evening game, our toss prediction is that the winning captain will elect bat second.

Pitch Conditions

The red soil at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai offers a good amount of bounce which can be enjoyed by the batsmen. The wicket has an average first innings score of 169.2, however, in the last few matches, we’ve seen scores barely break 160.

The forecast for the start of the game is 31C with a ‘real-feel’ temperature more than 10 degrees warmer at 44C. Rain isn’t expected; however the threat of dew is high as the humidity is predicted to be 77%.