GT vs KKR: What happened to Hardik Pandya? Rashid opens up on captain's unavailability

Gujarat Titans fans were surprised to see their star all-rounder Rashid Khan walking out for toss instead of captain Hardik Pandya, ahead of match no. 13 of Indian Premier League 2023 against Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday. While he won the toss and opted to bat first, also provided an important about the skipper’s unavailability. Speaking to the match presenter, Rashid admitted that the team management doesn’t want to take risks with Hardik, who is slightly unwell.

“Just unwell slightly, don't want to take risks with him. As a team, we will try to play good cricket. We would like to bat well and put runs on the board. Just one change, Vijay Shankar is in for Hardik,” said Rashid after the coin toss. Although Pandya is yet to make a notable impact with bat or ball in IPL 2023, his absence will certainly be a bonus for KKR.

Defending champions GT head into the match on the back of two consecutive victories. They started the season off a stunning win over four-time champions Chennai Super Kings, before defeating DC by six wickets in the next game. On the other hand, KKR started with a loss against Punjab Kings but made a comeback after beating RCCB by 81 runs in their second game.

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GT vs KKR Playing XI: Confirmed playing XIs for match no. 13 of IPL 2023

Kolkata Knight Riders (Playing XI): Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), N Jagadeesan, Nitish Rana(c), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Suyash Sharma, Lockie Ferguson, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy

Gujarat Titans (Playing XI): Wriddhiman Saha(w), Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Vijay Shankar, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Abhinav Manohar, Rashid Khan(c), Mohammed Shami, Alzarri Joseph, Yash Dayal

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GT vs KKR, IPL 2023 Squads: Full squads for Gujarat Titans & Kolkata Knight Riders

Gujarat Titans IPL 2023 Squad: Wriddhiman Saha(w), Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Hardik Pandya(c), David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Mohammed Shami, Alzarri Joseph, Joshua Little, Yash Dayal, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Jayant Yadav, Vijay Shankar, Abhinav Manohar, Srikar Bharat, Mohit Sharma, Pradeep Sangwan, Matthew Wade, Odean Smith, Shivam Mavi, Darshan Nalkande, Urvil Patel

Kolkata Knight Riders IPL 2023 Squad: Mandeep Singh, Rahmanullah Gurbaz(w), Venkatesh Iyer, Nitish Rana(c), Rinku Singh, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shardul Thakur, Tim Southee, Umesh Yadav, Varun Chakaravarthy, Suyash Sharma, Anukul Roy, Vaibhav Arora, N Jagadeesan, Jason Roy, David Wiese, Lockie Ferguson, Kulwant Khejroliya, Harshit Rana