Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants are over-reliant on their respective top orders – one by design, the other by force. When the two four-season-old teams meet in Lucknow’s Ekana Cricket Stadium on Saturday, the result could be decided by which top order outscores the other.
The two teams have adopted contrasting strategies: the Super Giants have built their squad around established big-hitters, while the Titans rely on a top order of three accumulators – at least one of whom is expected to bat through the innings.
So far, in the IPL 2025, both tactics have given results: GT sits at the top of the table with four out of five wins, while LSG has lost just two of its five games.
Marsh and Pooran: A Lethal Pair
LSG has struck gold with a formidable top three, featuring the tournament’s leading run-getters, Mitchell Marsh and Nicholas Pooran, alongside Aiden Markram, who is slowly finding his groove opening the innings.
The Aussie batter has displayed his spectrum of shots, muscling anything short or in his range, particularly picking the deliveries pitching within the stumps. The West Indian has been equally good on both sides of the pitch; bowlers have tested him against bouncers, but Pooran hasn’t shied away from pulling them, hitting 36 runs off 13 attempted pulls.
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The Titans will rely on Mohammed Siraj to keep Marsh quiet in the PowerPlay. Siraj has begun the season well and will look to bring the new ball into the right-hander to exploit his vulnerability early on. Shubman Gill could also turn to Prasidh Krishna’s off-cutters and pace-off deliveries to counter the Pooran threat.
Another in-game contest to watch out for is between Pooran and Rashid Khan. The Afghan spinner’s struggles this season, evidenced by his 10 runs per over economy, will embolden the left-hander to unleash his signature sweep shot and prevent the tweaker from finding his footing.
Titans will hope they run through Marsh and Pooran early, exposing Lucknow’s fidgety middle order. Rishabh Pant has looked out of colour with the bat, while Ayush Badoni and David Miller are yet to play a memorable innings.
Attack on Titans
In young Sai Sudharsan, the Titans have found a reliable batter, aware of how to construct an innings without losing the tempo. His presence, combined with the experience of Gill and Jos Buttler, gives GT a formidable top three.
Sai Sudarshan of GT during the Indian Premier League 2025.
| Photo Credit:
K BAHGYA PRAKASH/ The Hindu
Sai Sudarshan of GT during the Indian Premier League 2025.
| Photo Credit:
K BAHGYA PRAKASH/ The Hindu
On the flip side, the three batters with similar traits make Gujarat’s batting one-dimensional: attacking intent but not-so-quick starts. Gill’s first 10 runs come at 7.66 runs per over, Sudharsan 6.62, and Buttler 7.20.
Gill has got multiple starts this season and is due a big score – something Lucknow would be wary of. Akash Deep, shaping the new ball in, could exploit Gill’s shaky footwork against deliveries outside off. For Sudharsan’s refractory flicks and pulls early in the innings, Pant and Avesh Khan could plan a leg-side trap with a deep square leg fielder.
The early wickets won’t just force Buttler to anchor the innings, they’ll also expose GT’s still unsettled middle order.
“We know the top three are scoring the bulk of the runs. But yes, there will be a situation where wickets do fall, but that’s what our preparation is for. We’ve been doing it for the last month since our preparatory camp started. As batters, we are ready for any situation that comes,” Shahrukh Khan, who was promoted to number four in the previous game against Rajasthan Royals, said.
Black soil or mixed soil?
The pitch for the game is yet to be confirmed, as ground staff and curators were seen working on two central wickets, while both teams conducted open net sessions on either side of the ground on Friday.
The fifth pitch, prepared in mixed soil, was uncovered in the afternoon when the training began, and later, the sixth pitch, consisting of black soil, was also rolled over.
Both pitches were later covered, keeping the host and the visitor in a tangle regarding the nature of the surface for the first afternoon game here this season.