We will see a guttural roar from the newcomers Gujarat Lions (GL) in the 9th season of Vivo Indian Premier League (IPL) starting this weekend. GL are studded with T20 specialists who can turn the tide in no time. However, it was evident during the auction that they were keen on drafting all-rounders into the team. Given the kind of importance all-rounders had in the previous editions of this cash-rich T20 domestic spectacle, GL owners invested their money on the right individuals to make an impact in its very first stint. India’s belligerent southpaw Suresh Raina will martial the roaring GL, and judging by the brand of cricket the southpaw plays, GL will fire on all cylinders right from the word go.
Fearless and still young, Raina has been IPL’s most talismanic batsman since its inception. His IPL statistics speak volumes and evidence the fact that he will play a crucial rule in GL’s success this summer. He has played the most matches in IPL, and has scored most runs (though it may come as a surprise that he never won the Orange Cap). Moreover, he is the only player to have never missed an IPL match.
From 132 matches, Raina has plundered 3,699 runs at a staggering average of 34.25 and even more impressive strike-rate of 139.8. He has a century and 25 half-centuries under his belt. In fact, he is not only known for his batting but also for his athletic fielding. He has taken 74 catches, the most by any player in the history of IPL. Such is the brilliance of Suresh Raina in this T20 extravaganza! Also read: Gujarat Lions have match-winners in Dwayne Bravo and Brendon McCullum, says Suresh Raina
The other T20 destructive top-order batsmen GL boasts of are Brendon McCullum, Aaron Finch and Dwayne Smith. MCullum’s 73-ball 158 against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the opener of IPL will stay in our memory forever. ‘Baz’ retired from international cricket just before ICC World T20 2016; as a result, it is expected that he will play with full freedom and go all guns blazing. From 76 IPL matches, McCullum has scored 2,080 runs at a strike-rate of 128.5; his role in the batting Powerplay will hold the key.
Finch, ranked at No. 2 in ICC World T20I rankings, is another T20 stalwart to look forward to. His power-hitting will give his team impetus at the top order.
Smith was not part of the West Indian team when they lifted ICC World T20 2016, but has played several match-winning innings for Mumbai Indians (MI) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the past. With McCullum and Finch at the top and Raina at No. 3, it will be difficult for him to find a place in GL’s playing XI, given that a side can accommodate only four overseas players.
GL also have remarkable all-rounders at their disposal in Dwayne Bravo, James Faulkner and Ravindra Jadeja. This variety of attack is what keeps the GL ahead in the race: right-arm pacer in Bravo, left-arm pacer in Faulkner and left-arm spinner in Jadeja. While we have seen Bravo’s heroics with bat, Faulkner is Australia’s second-fastest centurion. Jadeja may not have used his blade to rampaging effect at international level, but his batting average of 23.84 speaks volumes about his batting ability.They also have Amit Mishra among their ranks who is been playing for Uttar Pradesh as a medium pace bowler.
We saw how leg-spinners can be lethal in the shortest and fastest format of the game. GL have one of the most potent spinner their ranks — Pravin Tambe. While Mishra flights the ball more, Tambe is quicker through the air, making the ball zip. Going by the pitches dished out in the recent edition of World T20, both spinners will come handy to make early inroads.
Dinesh Karthik will keep wickets for GL. Once India’s Test opener, Karthik has scored 2,207 IPL runs at an average of 23.47. He has taken 69 catches and 23 stumpings from 122 matches.
GL boasts of a decent bowling attack with Dale Steyn, Dhawal Kulkarni, Praveen Kumar, Pradeep Sangwan and Andrew Tye in their ranks. Steyn will probably spearhead the bowling unit, but his current form and fitness will be a cause of concern for GL. Nonetheless, Praveen and he will be more than a handful with their swing in the batting Powerplay.
All in all, GL are in top contention to come up victorious in their first ever IPL stint.
(Kaustubh S. Mayekar, a reporter at CricketCountry, played cricket at U-16 level. Like his idol Rahul Dravid, he often shadow-practises cricket shots. His Twitter handle is @TheCricKnight.)
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