Ranking GT's 3 best overseas combinations for IPL 2024
The Gujarat Titans (GT), who finished runners-up in IPL 2023, will begin the upcoming season under a new captain in Shubman Gill. All-rounder Hardik Pandya, who led the franchise in their first two seasons in the T20 league, will be captaining the Mumbai Indians this season.
At the IPL 2024 mini-auction held in Dubai in December, GT purchased eight players - two of them overseas. Australian left-arm pacer Spencer Johnson was purchased for ₹10 crore, while Afghanistan all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai, who had a terrific 2023 ODI World Cup, was bought for ₹50 lakh.
Overseas players are a key component of any IPL franchise. Apart from the two purchased at the auction, GT have David Miller, Matthew Wade, Kane Williamson, Rashid Khan, Joshua Little and Noor Ahmad in their ranks.
In the build-up to IPL 2024, we rank Gujarat Titans' three best overseas combinations for the season.
#3 David Miller, Matthew Wade, Rashid Khan and Azmatullah Omarzai
Gujarat Titans' best overseas combination is incomplete without senior batter David Miller and star spinner Rashid Khan. The two have been instrumental in Gujarat Titans winning the final in their inaugural appearance in IPL 2022 and finishing runners-up last year.
Miller smashed 481 runs in 16 games in IPL 2022, averaging 68.71 at a strike rate of 142.73. Last season, he had comparatively underwhelming numbers, scoring 259 runs in 16 games at an average of 32.38 and a strike rate of 145.51. GT, though, will back the South African big-hitter to come good in IPL 2024.
Speaking of Rashid, he has been exceptional as always in the last two editions of the IPL as well. The seasoned Afghanistan leggie claimed 19 wickets in 16 games at an average of 22.16 and an economy rate of 6.60 in 2022.
Last year, he claimed 27 scalps in 17 games, averaging 20.44 at an economy rate of 8.24. Apart from his bowling, Rashid also played some brilliant knocks lower down the order.
Gujarat Titans have the option to go in with attacking Australian keeper-batter Matthew Wade and Afghanistan all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai as their other two overseas options in the playing XI.
Wade was a huge disappointment with the bat for GT in 2022, scoring only 157 runs in 10 games and did not play a single game last year. The franchise have, however, kept their faith in him, knowing how destructive he can be.
Omarzai, who will be making his IPL debut, can contribute with both bat and ball. He has been out of form with the willow lately, but claimed 4-9 against Afghanistan in Sharjah in a recent T20I.
#2 David Miller, Kane Williamson, Rashid Khan and Joshua Little
Kane Williamson hurt himself very badly while fielding in GT's first game of IPL 2023 and was ruled out for the remainder of the tournament. The franchise have retained him for the 2024 season and will be keen to see what he can offer.
The experienced batter had a poor season while leading SunRisers Hyderabad in IPL 2022. He managed only 216 runs in 13 games at an average of under 20 and a strike rate below 100. There are no doubts about Williamson's quality, though. If he gets going, he can score at a swift pace even by playing proper cricket strokes.
Young Ireland left-arm pacer Joshua Little played 10 games for GT in IPL 2023, claiming seven wickets. He did not produce outstanding numbers, but gave enough glimpses of his talent.
Little has come up with some impressive performances for Ireland and, being a left-arm pacer, he gives variety to the attack as well.
#1 David Miller, Kane Williamson, Rashid Khan, Noor Ahmad
Miller, Rashid and left-arm wrist-spinner Noor Ahmad feature in the best possible GT overseas combination for IPL 2024.
There was a close tussle between Williamson and Wade for the fourth spot. The Kiwi got the nod in the end on the basis of his consistency across formats over the years.
Speaking of Ahmad, he made a big impact in IPL 2023. The youngster played 13 games and picked up 16 wickets at an average of 23.06 and an economy rate of 7.82. He bamboozled quite a few batters with his variations and proved to be the perfect foil to his Afghanistan teammate Rashid.
With Noor and Rashid bowling in tandem, one can expect GT to come up with some highly proficient performances with the ball even in seasoned fast bowler Mohammed Shami's absence due to injury.