5 domestic players from Gujarat whom GT can target at IPL Auction 2023
Hardik Pandya-led Gujarat Titans (GT) won the 2022 Indian Premier League. They made a definitive statement by winning the tournament in their maiden campaign.
They will head into the next edition looking to defend their title. Ahead of the mini-auction on December 23, GT has released some big names like Lockie Ferguson, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Jason Roy, Varun Aaron, Gurkeerat Singh Mann, and Dominic Drakes.
This means GT have some gaps in their current squad at the moment and will ideally seek to fill them up at the mini-auction. In this listicle now, we will look at the five Gujarat domestic cricketers whom GT can target for IPL 2023 Auction.
#1 Samarth Vyas
Saurashtra batter Samarth Vyas has been in excellent form of late. He became the top scorer at the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy with 314 runs in seven games.
Vyas's strike rate of 177.40 has made him an interesting pick ahead of the mini-auction. He also notably hit a stunning double century against Manipur in the ongoing Vijay Hazare Trophy.
He would be a good fit for GT since he bats at one down, a position the franchise struggled to finalize a player for last season.
#2 Cheteshwar Pujara
The Indian Test veteran is also a potential candidate to bat at the number three position for GT. He could not find a buyer at the 2022 auction due to his reputation as a red-ball specialist.
However, Pujara has shown that he can excel in the shorter format of the game as well. He did really well for Sussex and then maintained a strike rate of 136.05 for Saurashtra in the recently concluded Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
#3 Arzan Nagwaswalla
Dominic Drakes was a good left-arm fast-bowling option for GT. With him gone, they can look at the domestic circuit and bring in Arzan Nagwaswalla.
He bagged seven wickets in five games with an economy of 6.35 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy.
#4 Priyank Panchal
Priyank Panchal joined Gujarat Titans as a backup player in IPL 2022. He is among the top run scorers for Gujarat in domestic cricket in recent times.
Despite having Wriddhiman Saha and Shubman Gill as the two established openers, GT could look to bring in Panchal as a backup. Panchal registered 169 runs in five matches of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy at an average of 42.25.
#5 Ninad Rathva
Another backup option, Ninad Rathva can deputize well for R Sai Kishore as a left-arm spin bowler.
Rathva also brings batting depth, which might help GT in some games. He bagged nine wickets in six matches at the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy. Rathva also scored 71 runs in three innings in the same tournament.