In the 15th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 15), two new franchises - Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants - participated in the cash-rich tournament for the first time. Under Hardik Pandya's leadership and Ashish Nehra's astute coaching, the Gujarat-based franchise defeated all the experienced teams and emerged as champions in just their maiden season. In the upcoming season of the cash-rich tournament (IPL 2023), Hardik will shoulder the responsibility of rising to the weight of expectations once again.
Gujarat has a fantastic balance
The Titans have a charismatic captain in Hardik while in Shubman Gill, they probably have the best young batter in the world currently in their squad. During the auction, the defending champions also secured the services of Kane Williamson, who adds experience and leadership qualities to the squad. In David Miller and Rahul Tewatia, the Titans have two proven finishers who can destroy any bowling attack with their explosive stroke-making ability.
In the bowling department, veteran pacer Mohammed Shami will bring his experience to the fore and will be joined by young fast bowler Shivam Mavi, who was bought for Rs 6 crore in the auction. In Rashid Khan, Gujarat have the best T20 spinner in the world while Tewatia and R Sai Kishore will form the backbone of the Titans' spin department.
Gujarat to face Chennai Super Kings in the season opener
Gujarat Titans will begin their season against four-time champions Chennai Super Kings, a franchise that will be led by MS Dhoni, The opening match of IPL 2023 is scheduled to be played on March 31. It would be interesting to see if Gujarat maintains its dominance over the other franchises as how it did last year. The Titans squad consists of 25 players out of which 17 are Indians and eight are overseas players.
Captain: Hardik Pandya
Coach: Ashish Nehra
Home Ground: Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad
IPL Trophy: 1
Owner: CVC Capital Partners
Gujarat Titans full squad: Hardik Pandya (c), Shubman Gill, Abhinav Manohar, Sai Sudharsan, Wriddhiman Saha, David Miller, Matthew Wade, Rashid Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Vijay Shankar, Mohammed Shami, Alzarri Joseph, Noor Ahmad, Kane Williamson, Odean Smith, KS Bharat, Shivam Mavi, Urvil Patel, Yash Dayal, Pradeep Sangwan, Mohit Sharma, Josh Little, Darshan Nalkande, Jayant Yadav, R Sai Kishore.
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