GT vs RR: Royals opt for chase, target improvements in leaky bowling attack

Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson elected to field against hosts Gujarat Titans on Wednesday with an aim to rediscover their bowling form in the highstakes IPL 2025 clash that could significantly impact their standingsThe Royals have replaced spin allrounder Wanindu Hasaranga who misses out to due to personal reasons with medium pacer Fazalhaq Farooqi while Titans squad remain unchangedRajasthan currently have accrued four points and are in dire need of a win to break free from the midtable congestion while Gujarat Titans sit on six points and a win would keep them firmly positioned among the leaguersquos frontrunnersWhile GT have strung together three consecutive wins and RR have notched backtoback victories their recent success masks the underwhelming performances from their bowling departments Gujaratrsquos bowling has largely relied on standout performances from Mohammed Siraj and spinner R Sai Kishore while the rest of the attack has struggled to make an impactGujaratrsquos attack faces a stern test from a dangerous Rajasthan Royals batting lineup headlined by Sanju Samson Dhruv Jurel Riyan Parag and Nitish Rana mdash all of whom have struck at over 150 with Rana exceeding 180 The one concern remains Yashasvi Jaiswal whose tally of 101 runs from four matches at 13116 strike rate includes 67 in a single knock against Punjab Kings The Royals will be hoping for more consistency from the lefthander who remains firmly on the radar of the Indian selectorsBowlingwise Rajasthan have issues of their own Apart from Sandeep Sharma none of their bowlers have been able to effectively contain opposition batters However Jofra Archers impressive spell 40253 against Punjab Kings offers a glimmer of hope as they head into what is expected to be a highscoring encounterAhmedabads track has consistently served up runs with totals of 243 232 196 and 160 in the last four completed innings setting the stage for a potentially explosive showdown Rajasthanrsquos bowling will need to step up against a formidable GT batting lineup featuring the inform Shubman Gill B Sai Sudharsan Sherfane Rutherford and Jos ButtlerAdding further depth to GTrsquos batting arsenal is Washington Sundar whose fluent 49run knock against Punjab Kings has significantly bolstered their middleorder firepowerTeamsRajasthan Royals Yashasvi Jaiswal Sanju Samson cwk Nitish Rana Riyan Parag Shimron Hetmyer Dhruv Jurel Jofra Archer Maheesh Theekshana Fazalhaq Farooqi Sandeep Sharma Tushar DeshpandeGujarat Titans Sai Sudharsan Shubman Gill c Jos Buttler wk Sherfane Rutherford Shahrukh Khan Rahul Tewatia Rashid Khan Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore Mohammed Siraj Prasidh Krishna Ishant SharmaWith PTI inputsatOptionskeyd0ddb8ef8f1a62a8cdd22fac27fc5ea7formatiframeheight90width728params