IPL 2022: Lucknow, Gujarat clash in battle for top spot in Playoffs race

Even though the winner of Tuesday’s tie will formally give IPL 2022 its first team in the Playoffs, both Lucknow and Gujarat are all but assured of a place in the last four.

Hardik Pandya’s Titans - having lost its last two games - will be desperate to get back into winning mode towards the end of the league stage.

When Gujarat Titans faced Lucknow Super Giants in the clash of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 debutants at the Wankhede Stadium, not too many would have predicted what lay ahead for them. Six weeks hence, the newbies will square off against each other yet again in the battle for the top spot.

Even though the winner of Tuesday’s tie at the Maharashtra Cricket Association stadium will formally give IPL 2022 its first team in the Playoffs, both the Super Giants and the Titans are all but assured of a place in the last four. Still, the race for the table-topper will be critical for both the teams to go hard at each other.

Despite being tied at 16 points from 11 games and being unbeaten at Gahunje so far, both the teams will enter their last fixture at the venue. Hardik Pandya’s Titans - having lost its last two games - will be desperate to get back into winning mode towards the end of the league stage.

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K. L. Rahul’s Super Giants, on the other hand, will be hoping to extend its four-match winning streak. While Rahul will be gunning to close in on Jos Buttler in the race for the Orange Cap, Lucknow’s pace quartet will be eager to repeat its heroics against the Kolkata Knight Riders at the same venue over the weekend.

The Titans though will be banking on Shubman Gill to withstand the onslaught of Mohsin Khan and Co., with the left-handed duo of David Miller and Rahul Tewatia to come to the party later on in the innings.