Gujarat Titans sign Rahmanullah Gurbaz as Jason Roy's replacement: Reports
Afghanistan's 20-year-old promising wicketkeeper-batter Rahmanullah Gurbaz is all set to play for Gujarat Titans in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. According to Cricbuzz, the Hardik Pandya-led franchise have signed him as a replacement for explosive England opener Jason Roy, who pulled out of the entire tournament citing bubble fatigue.
Gurbaz, considered a potential 'sensation' by former Afghanistan national team head coach Lance Klusener, has had an eye-catching ride in T20 cricket so far.
In 20 T20I appearances for Afghanistan, the right-hander has scored 534 runs at an average of 26.7 and a strike rate of 137.63, with his best score being 87.
While Gurbaz is yet to play in the IPL, he has featured in several white-ball leagues around the globe. In the recently concluded Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2022, Gurbaz played for Islamabad United. He finished the campaign with 139 runs from six games at an average of 27.80 and a brilliant strike rate of 180.51. His explosive batting at the top of the order was quite impactful to Islamabad's journey to the Qualifiers.
While there hasn't been any official confirmation from the new IPL franchise, the aforementioned report cited sources in Afghanistan to claim the development. Interestingly, Gurbaz on Tuesday himself re-posted a congratulatory post for his IPL debut via his official Instagram account.
Gujarat Titans set to sign Rahmanullah Gurbaz as the replacement of Jason Roy. https://t.co/ugG7xeKXeZ
Gurbaz had put a base price of ₹50 lakh on himself at the IPL 2022 auction but went unsold. He'll now join compatriots Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad at Gujarat Titans and will be the fifth Afghan in the league this season. Kolkata Knight Riders' Mohammad Nabi and SunRisers Hyderabad's Fazalhaq Farooqi are the other two.
Check out the IPL 2022 News here.
Why did Gujarat Titans choose Rahmanullah Gurbaz ahead of specialist openers?
IPL 2022. https://t.co/fZ0LofBgSE
The report also suggested that Gujarat Titans didn't sign a like-for-like replacement for Roy (who is a specialist opener) due to the slight uncertainty surrounding their first-choice 'keeper Wriddhiman Saha's participation in the tournament.
Saha is likely to be involved in the Board of Control for Cricket in India's (BCCI) investigation of the threats he received from a reputed journalist, and the franchise didn't want to take any risks. Matthew Wade, another wicketkeeping option, is currently in Pakistan and will not be available until almost 10 days after the season kicks off on March 26.
Gujarat Titans will play their first game of the season against fellow IPL newcomers Lucknow Super Giants on March 28.