SATURDAY IPL: The Edge previews Gujarat Titans v Rajasthan Royals with a recommended BETDAQ bet.
Gujarat Titans v Rajasthan Royals
MATCH OVERVIEW:
The IPL rolls into another weekend as Gujarat Titans host Rajasthan Royals in Ahmedabad on Saturday on Betdaq Betting Exchange ! This is Gujarat’s first home game of the season, and they are already in need of a bounce back after losing the first game in a rollercoaster. Gujarat had a difficult opener against Punjab Kings in New Chandigarh with the bat posting a modest 162/6 which looked short of par – despite a spirited bowling performance that had Punjab in real trouble at 118/6, debutant Australian all-rounder Cooper Connolly steered Punjab home with an unbeaten 72 to win by three wickets with five balls to spare. Gujarat might have lost, but they showed signs of a good side – they need to put everything together now.
Rajasthan Royals, on the other hand, could not have started the season in more commanding fashion. They blew Chennai Super Kings away in Guwahati, bowling them out for just 127 and knocking that off quickly. The perfect start. Jofra Archer and Nandre Burger were rapid and brutal in the powerplay, and Ravindra Jadeja took two wickets in his first over back in pink. After everyone had played once, they obviously topped the table on net run rate after that performance. What about the Vaibhav Sooryavanshi show in the chase. The 15-year-old sensation smashed 52 off just 17 balls – with five sixes and four fours. He’s only a few days over 15 too! He will be the story of this IPL I feel.
These two sides have plenty of history. Gujarat Titans and Rajasthan Royals have a little rivalry dating back to 2022, when Gujarat beat Rajasthan to lift the title in their debut season. They met again in the final in 2023, with Gujarat winning again. Rajasthan will be hoping in third turn for the title in two months time!
WEATHER AND PITCH WATCH:
Ahmedabad is the world’s largest cricket stadium, so it’s a cracking place for an IPL fixture. The pitch here is generally batting-friendly with true bounce and a fast outfield. Average first-innings IPL scores at this venue sit around 185-200, with 200+ totals quite common. IPL 2025 saw the highest team total here reach 243, but we also saw scores of 235 and 230. The only thing to note here is obviously India hosted the T20 World Cup and we had a few games here, so perhaps the wickets won’t be as fresh, but it’s still hard not to expect a high scoring game.
RECOMMENDED BET:
Rajasthan come in on the back of a dominant opening win and with serious momentum; their batting is explosive from ball one with Sooryavanshi and Jaiswal at the top, and their bowling with an attack of Archer, Burger and Bishnoi is genuinely high quality. Gujarat are under pressure having lost their opener, but they played well and come into the game as favourites with home advantage. Gujarat are trading 1.84, and in my opinion that looks a little short. I know Gujarat are packed with stars, but on a flat wicket I’d have this as a 50/50 game and I’m happy with a small bet from a value point of view on Rajasthan.
The Edge Says:
One point win Rajasthan Royals to beat Gujarat Titans at 2.12 with Betdaq Betting Exchange
View the market here -> https://betdaq.biz/IPGuRa
IN-RUNNING STRATEGY:
Ahmedabad was an exceptionally high scoring venue last season, so it’s hard not to expect runs. Both sides are packed with hitters and power too. We had nine IPL games here last season, and the lowest first innings total was 190 – that was the Final. This doesn’t strike me as a game where you want to support the blowers; granted Rajasthan were excellent with the ball in their opening game. I would lean towards supporting the chasing team at the innings break as long as we don’t see a score 220+.
