Punjab Kings (PBKS) will host reigning champions Gujarat Titans (GT) in their fourth match of the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali on Thursday, April 13.
Led by their talismanic captain Shikhar Dhawan, the Kings will look to return to winning ways after succumbing to their first defeat of IPL 2023 against Sunrisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium on Sunday.
The PBKS outfit earlier defeated Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals in their first two matches. With four points from three matches, the Kings are currently placed sixth in the IPL 2023 standings.
On the other hand, defending champions Gujarat Titans will aim to bounce back after losing to the Knight Riders in a high-scoring thriller at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Gujarat Titans previously won their opening two matches of IPL 2023, beating Chennai Super Kings and Delhi Capitals. The Hardik Pandya-led Titans are placed fourth in the standings with four points from three games.
Meanwhile, let us look at some of the stats and numbers ahead of the clash between the Kings and the Titans in Mohali on Thursday.
Punjab Kings vs Gujarat Titans head-to-head
Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans have faced each other twice in the Indian Premier League. While the Titans registered a six-wicket win in their first-ever meeting, the Kings secured a comprehensive eight-wicket victory in their last encounter.
This will be the first meeting between the two sides at the Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali.
| Competition | Total Matches | Won by PBKS | Won by GT |
| Overall | 2 | 1 | 1 |
Dhawan’s scintillating form in IPL 2023
Punjab Kings’ captain Shikhar Dhawan has been in magnificent form in the ongoing edition of the IPL. The 37-year-old has already scored 225 runs in three matches at an excellent strike rate of 149. Dhawan is the current Orange Cap holder as he is 16 runs ahead of second-placed David Warner.
Most runs in IPL 2023
| Player | Runs |
| Shikhar Dhawan (Punjab Kings) | 225 |
| David Warner (Delhi Capitals) | 209 |
| Ruturaj Gaikwad (Chennai Super Kings) | 189 |
| Faf du Plessis (Royal Challengers Bangalore) | 175 |
| Virat Kohli (Royal Challengers Bangalore) | 164 |
Interestingly, Dhawan and Warner share the record for the most fours in IPL 2023. Both the opening batters have registered 27 fours so far.
Most fours in IPL 2023
| Player | 4s |
| Shikhar Dhawan (Punjab Kings) | 27 |
| David Warner (Delhi Capitals) | 27 |
| Yashasvi Jaiswal (Rajasthan Royals) | 21 |
| Jos Buttler (Rajasthan Royals) | 19 |
| Shubman Gill (Gujarat Titans) | 14 |
| Rahul Tripathi (Sunrisers Hyderabad) | 14 |
Gujarat Titans’ strong top-order
Gujarat Titans’ batters have provided a quick-fire start in the first six overs of IPL 2023. The Titans have scored fifty-plus runs in the powerplay overs in each of their three matches played so far. GT batted with a run-rate of 9.6 in the first six overs, which is the third best for any team in this year’s IPL.
Best run-rate in Powerplay in IPL 2023
| Team | Run-rate |
| Rajasthan Royals | 11.7 |
| Chennai Super Kings | 11.0 |
| Gujarat Titans | 9.6 |
| Punjab Kings | 8.9 |
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | 8.8 |
Battle of strong pace bowling attacks
Both Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans have a strong pace bowling unit and their fast bowlers have done well in IPL 2023 so far. The Kings' pace bowlers have the best bowling average (23.5), while the Titans have the fifth best bowling average (31.5) in IPL 2023 so far.
Best Bowling Average of pacers for a team in IPL 2023
| Team | Matches | Wickets | Average |
| Punjab Kings | 3 | 12 | 23.5 |
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | 3 | 16 | 23.6 |
| Sunrisers Hyderabad | 3 | 13 | 25.4 |
| Lucknow Super Giants | 4 | 13 | 30.4 |
| Gujarat Titans | 3 | 14 | 31.5 |
Both PBKS and GT pace bowlers have also been economical compared to other teams in IPL 2023 so far.
| Team | Matches | Wickets | Economy |
| Rajasthan Royals | 3 | 9 | 8.1 |
| Sunrisers Hyderabad | 3 | 13 | 8.7 |
| Royal Challengers Bangalore | 3 | 16 | 9.0 |
| Punjab Kings | 3 | 12 | 9.1 |
| Gujarat Titans | 3 | 14 | 9.2 |
Rashid Khan - Gujarat Titans' player to watch out for
Gujarat Titans' star leg-spinner Rashid Khan bagged a hat-trick in their last game against Kolkata Knight Riders, which ended in a losing cause.
The Afghanistan spinner has picked up 21 wickets in 12 innings against Punjab Kings in the IPL.
Most wickets vs team for Rashid Khan in IPL
| Team | Innings | Wickets | Economy |
| Punjab Kings | 12 | 21 | 5.8 |
| Delhi Capitals | 14 | 19 | 6.0 |
| Kolkata Knight Riders | 14 | 17 | 6.8 |
Some more stats to keep an eye on
• Rashid Khan needs 58 runs to complete 2000 T20 runs.
• Alzarri Joseph needs two more wickets to complete 100 T20 wickets.
• Hardik Pandya needs 5 more wickets to complete 150 T20 wickets.
• Shikhar Dhawan needs 6 more sixes to complete 150 IPL sixes.
• Kagiso Rabada needs 1 more wicket to complete 100 IPL wickets, he will be the quickest to reach this landmark in
terms of matches played.
• Arshdeep Singh needs 4 more wickets to complete 50 IPL wickets.
• Hardik Pandya needs 24 more runs to complete 2000 IPL runs.
• Hardik also needs 58 more runs to complete 3000 T20 runs in India.
• Shahrukh Khan is 2 fours away from 50 fours in T20s.
