Gujarat Titans’ director of cricket Vikram Solanki believes that the recent changes in rules will ‘bring interesting dynamics’ to the Indian Premier League (IPL) this year.
When the tournament kicks off with the defending champion Titans taking on Chennai Super Kings in Ahmedabad next week, it will feature an Impact Player - one substitute who can come in to bat and bowl. Also, the teams will be allowed to finalise their playing XI after the toss, and according to Solanki, it will be ‘interesting to see’ how the teams adapt to the rule change.
“It’s going to be an interesting change to sort of dynamics. It might bring some tactical decisions to be made. But essentially, the way we are looking at it at the moment, especially given the fact that you can name your sort of eleven from your squad after the toss, will have a slightly different bearing,” Solanki said on Thursday during a virtual media interaction.
“Initially, we are starting to have discussions about it. I think it will bring interesting dynamics to the IPL this year. We have had discussions about it and it will be interesting to see how different teams adapt to the new rules…”
Solanki, a former England international, also highlighted Shubman Gill’s leadership qualities and indicated if and when an opportunity arises, the youngster could step up as a future leader.
“He (Gill) has always been a leader in his own right. He adopted a leadership role last year and yes I absolutely believe that he can be captain of the future because apart from his immense talent with the bat he has a smart cricket brain too,” Solanki said.
Gill, 23, amassed 483 runs in 16 matches in the last edition of the IPL at an average of 34.5 with four half-centuries and a highest score of 96.
Under Hardik Pandya’s leadership, Titans clinched the title last year and the team would want to do an encore. Solanki, however, stressed on the fact that the team will ensure that the captain is fit and refreshed throughout.
“Hardik is very professional and looks after his body considering the strain he has to take keeping in mind different formats of the game. Our medical team is in constant contact with the BCCI medical team to ensure he is in the best shape for the tournament,” Solanki added.
Titans will miss out on the services of David Miller for the opener against CSK, and Solanki said, “It is disappointing that David is missing and as things stand, we need to respect his commitment to the South Africa national side. All we can do is prepare the guys who are already here for the first game. It is just one game and we look forward to welcoming David really soon…”
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