Match Prediction
Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans open their new season with both captains, Shreyas Iyer and Shubman Gill, returning to T20 action after time away. Gill led GT to the knockouts last year, while Iyer guided PBKS to the IPL final. Both sides feature largely settled squads and begin this campaign aiming to replicate their 2025 success.
Toss & Conditions
The match will be played on pitch No. 4, the same surface where PBKS scored 219 against Chennai Super Kings last year. The pitch produced high totals on that occasion, and PBKS head coach Ricky Ponting expects another high-scoring contest.
Head-to-Head
Punjab Kings have won two of their last three matches against Gujarat Titans.
Punjab Kings
This is Punjab Kings’ first match of the season. In their last three matches from other tournaments, they won once and lost twice.
Gujarat Titans
This is Gujarat Titans’ first match of the season. They lost all three of their most recent matches from other tournaments.
Playing XI
News & Facts
- Cooper Connolly is set to bat at No. 3 for PBKS, with Marcus Stoinis and Marco Jansen confirmed in the XI.
- The fourth overseas slot for PBKS will go to either Azmatullah Omarzai, Ben Dwarshuis, or Xavier Bartlett.
- Rashid Khan and Washington Sundar are set to play for GT, with the team likely to include a fourth fast bowler as New Chandigarh favours seam bowling.
- Shreyas Iyer has scored only 27 runs in five games at New Chandigarh, with a highest score of 10.
- GT’s openers have contrasting records against Yuzvendra Chahal: Gill strikes at 122 with three dismissals, while Sai Sudharsan has 40 runs off 17 balls without dismissal.
Key Stats
Verdict
All analytical models favour PBKS, with probabilities ranging between 54% and 57%. The bookmaker market is more balanced at PBKS 51% (1.87) vs GT 49% (1.91). PBKS hold a small Elo advantage of +11 and have won two of the last three head-to-heads. GT’s recent form is weaker, having lost their last three matches.