IPL 2023: SRH face GT to keep playoff hopes alive

Gujarat Titans will square off against Sunrisers Hyderabad in match number 62 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. The defending champions will look to secure a place in the top two, whereas it is a must-win game for SRH as their playoff dreams hang by a thread. Both teams will look for a win as the playoff race intensifies. Here's the preview.

The last league phase game at the Narendra Modi Stadium will take place on May 15. The pitch here has assisted the batters, but pacers with the new ball can also wreak havoc. 9.35 reads the average run rate batting first here this season. Star Sports will telecast the match, while fans can also live-stream it on JioCinema from 7:30 pm IST.

Defending champions GT made their debut last season and therefore they have played only two matches against SRH. There is nothing to separate the two teams as they have won one apiece. In the last meeting, GT won the match by five wickets, despite Umran Malik's heroic 5/24. The Titans chased down 196, courtesy of Wriddhiman Saha's 68 and Rahul Tewatia's 21-ball 40*.

There are contrasting emotions at two different camps as GT look to defend their title. A win here will consolidate their place in the top two. But they are coming off a defeat and would like to get back to winning ways. Meanwhile, SRH lost a crucial game against LSG, but all is not over for them yet. They have to win this game.

GT Probable XI: Wriddhiman Saha (wicketkeeper), Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya (Captain), Vijay Shankar, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Abhinav Manohar, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Shami, Alzarri Joseph and Noor Ahmad. SRH Probable XI: Abhishek Sharma, Anmolpreet Singh, Rahul Tripathi, Aiden Markram (Captain), Glenn Phillips, Heinrich Klaasen (wicketkeeper), Abdul Samad, Mayank Markande, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan and Marco Jansen. Impact Players: Mohit Sharma (GT), Vivrant Sharma (SRH).

Gill has been in scintillating form and has amassed 475 runs in 12 matches at 43.18 this season. Rashid leads the 'Purple Cap' race this season with 23 scalps. Shami isn't far behind with 19 wickets (ER: 7:74). Klaasen's strike rate of 180.68 is the third highest among batters with 250-plus runs this season. Markande has been impressive with 12 wickets (ER: 7.80).

Fantasy option 1: Shubman Gill (vc), Abhishek Sharma, David Miller, Rahul Tripathi, Heinrich Klaasen, Hardik Pandya, Aiden Markram, Mohammed Shami, Rashid Khan (captain), Mayank Markande, and Noor Ahmad. Fantasy option 2: Shubman Gill (captain), Abhishek Sharma, David Miller, Wriddhiman Saha, Heinrich Klaasen (vc), Hardik Pandya, Aiden Markram, Mohammed Shami, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Noor Ahmad.