The Gujarat Titans are all set to enter their second mega auction in the Indian Premier League. Last time they struck gold as they found the right team combination which helped them win the IPL title in their first season in the competition and reach the final of the 2023 edition. The 2024 edition, however, didn’t go according to plan as they lost Hardik Pandya to Mumbai Indians before the season and Shubman Gill’s captaincy couldn’t get them to the playoffs.
The former champions have retained a good core that saw Rashid Khan become the top pick as Gill was the second man to be retained. There weren’t a lot of surprises when it came to GT’s retentions but there were a few big names that got released.
GT’s retentions for IPL 2025
Rashid Khan (18), Shubman Gill (16.5), Sai Sudharsan (8.5), Rahul Tewatia (4), Shahrukh Khan (4).
Rashid and Gill were the 2 big picks for GT and decided to invest 8.5 crores on Sai Sudharsan. They retained Rahul Tewatia and Shahrukh Khan as uncapped players for 4 crores each, which helped them retain a good amount heading into the auctions.
Players Released by GT
BR Sharath, Abhinav Manohar, Sandeep Warrier, Gurnoor Brar, Darshan Nalkande, David Miller, Jayant Yadav, Joshua Little, Kane Williamson, Matthew Wade, Mohammad Shami, Mohit Sharma, Noor Ahmad*, Sai Kishore, Vijay Shankar, Wriddhiman Saha, Azmatullah Omarzai, Umesh Yadav, Sushant Mishra, Kartik Tyagi, Manav Suthar, Spencer Johnson
GT POSSIBLE COMBINATION
GT have always had a good Indian core as their base and never had many big names in their mix. But after last season, they could target a few stars to change things up a bit.
- Shubman Gill
- Indian Wicketkeeper-batter/Overseas wicketkeeper-batter
- Sai Sudharsan
- Overseas all-rounder
- Overseas batter
- Shahrukh Khan
- Rahul Tewatia
- Rashid Khan
- Indian spinner
- Overseas pacer
- Indian pacer
A suitable opening partner for Gill who can keep wickets
For the last 3 seasons, Gill found himself the perfect opening partner in Wriddhiman Saha. However, the Bengal wicketkeeper is on the home stretch in terms of his career and Gujarat will look for someone of the same mould.
The best person for the job seems to be Ishan Kishan, who shares great camaraderie with Gill as well. In the IPL 2022 auction, GT were bidding heavily for Kishan before he returned to MI. He has the right profile to compliment Gill at the top.
If Kishan is out of their reach, they could turn their attention towards a wicketkeeper like Phil Salt or Rahmanullah Gurbaz in their lineup.
Also Read: Will CSK target Rishabh Pant with Rs 55 crore-purse?
Maxwell at No.4?
While this may appear to be a surprising option, Maxwell could fit the bill in GT. He will have the freedom and backing of the GT team management, who has allowed players to express themselves over the past few seasons.
If Maxwell can find consistency, then expect him to be a game-changer for GT in the coming seasons and his off-spin would be handy as well. If they want an all-rounder in that spot, they can also push for Marcus Stoinis, who is more than handy with his medium pace.
RTM for Shami or Miller?
The biggest miss for GT last season was the presence of Mohammed Shami. The Indian pacer picked up 28 wickets from 17 matches and led the bowling attack brilliantly for the Titans. With GT having one RTM left in their kitty we can expect them to use it on Shami, who is slowly making his return to the field. If they can get him, Shami will fill that Indian pacer spot for the former champions and will be the leader of the pack.
If they do miss out on Shami, a move for the young Umran Malik cannot be ruled out and they could bring back the veteran Mohit Sharma cheaply as well.
Much like Shami, David Miller has been a revelation since being a part of GT and he will be one key name they would look to bring back for the middle order. Miller’s poor form last season did affect the Titans but they will be hoping for a return from the Proteas star.
If they miss Miller, expect a move for Harry Brook, who had missed last season and he could be used in the middle-order.
A move for Starc?
Last time, GT went toe-to-toe with KKR for the signing of Mitchell Starc and ultimately gave up in the end and settled for Spencer Johnson instead. That experiment didn’t work out well and we can expect Gujarat to renew their interest in the Aussie pacer this time around.
Starc came into his own during the playoffs last season for KKR and showed his class in the IPL. So he could be the one high up on the agenda this time around and moves for Trent Boult or Kagiso Rabada can be expected if they don’t get their main target.
For the Indian spinner spot, it seems like GT will be looking to bring back Sai Kishore to the mix.
GT IPL AUCTION: PREDICTED TOP 5 TARGETS
Ishan Kishan
Glenn Maxwell
David Miller
Mohammed Shami
Mitchell Starc
GT: PREDICTED FIRST XI AFTER IPL MEGA AUCTION
Ishan Kishan (wk), Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Glenn Maxwell/Marcus , David Miller/Harry Brook, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Sai Kishore, Mohammed Shami/Umran Malik, Mitchell Starc/Trent Boult.
