"You can rest Yash Dayal" - Aakash Chopra says Gujarat Titans' seamer might take time to recover from Rinku Singh's onslaught
Aakash Chopra feels the Gujarat Titans (GT) should rest Yash Dayal and play Shivam Mavi instead if the latter is fit and available.
The Titans will face the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Thursday's (April 13) IPL 2023 clash in Mohali. Dayal was smoked for five consecutive sixes off the final five deliveries by Rinku Singh as the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) registered an improbable win in the defending champions' previous game.
While previewing the GT-PBKS clash in a video shared on his YouTube channel, Chopra opined that Dayal should make way for Shivam Mavi subject to the latter's availability, reasoning:
"In bowling, I feel you should play Shivam Mavi if he is available because you can rest Yash Dayal now. It takes a little time to recover after what happened to him."
The former Indian opener pointed out that the Gujarat Titans have an excellent bowling lineup otherwise, elaborating:
"The rest of the bowling is good. They have Alzarri Joseph and Joshua Little, and Mohammad Shami bowls well in any case. This team's bowling is quite strong and healthy. They have a lot of options available."
Apart from their seam-bowling might, the Titans have a potent spinner in the form of Rashid Khan. They could replace Dayal with one of Darshan Nalkande, Pradeep Sangwan, and Mohit Sharma if Mavi is unavailable.
"There is a question over Hardik Pandya's availability" - Aakash Chopra feels Rashid Khan erred as skipper in the Gujarat Titans' last game
![Hardik Pandya missed the Gujarat Titans' last game due to a viral infection. [P/C: iplt20.com]](https://statico.sportskeeda.com/editor/2023/04/de91c-16813653713796-1920.jpg?w=500)
While unsure of Hardik Pandya's availability for Thursday's game, Aakash Chopra opined that Rashid Khan should have used a sixth bowler against KKR, stating:
"There is a question over Hardik Pandya's availability. If he is fit and available, he will come and play. I feel Rashid Khan missed a trick in the last match. He is a brilliant captain, he does very well, but he didn't use the sixth bowler at all."
The reputed commentator highlighted that the Gujarat Titans have a formidable batting lineup which would be further strengthened if Hardik plays, explaining:
"Shubman Gill is batting very well. Wriddhiman Saha didn't keep in the last match, so there might be some issue there. After that, Sai Sudharsan - outstanding, Vijay Shankar is doing an amazing job, and David Miller is in red-hot form. The batting looks even more formidable if Hardik Pandya comes in between."
Chopra concluded by picking the Gujarat Titans as the likely winners of Thursday's game. He reasoned that the visitors have a better bowling lineup than the home team.