Bold gamble! Why MI handed three surprise debuts

NEW DELHI: Mumbai Indians won the toss and opted to bat first against Gujarat Titans in the Eliminator of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in New Chandigarh on Friday.The decision to bat first came as a surprise, especially after a low-scoring Qualifier 1 between Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Thursday, where bowlers dominated. However, MI skipper Hardik Pandya explained that the surface for Friday’s match appeared more batting-friendly.

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Mumbai made three changes to their playing XI, bringing in Jonny Bairstow, Richard Gleeson, and Raj Angad Bawa in place of Ryan Rickelton, Corbin Bosch, and Will Jacks — all of whom have returned to their respective national teams.

“We're going to bat. Looks like a different track than yesterday. A bit less grass. Big game, scoring runs and defending would be nice. We are all aware that for the last 9 games, we have been playing it like a knockout. Really need to turn up today and focus on the things which we can control. We've got three changes: Jonny comes back, Gleeson makes his debut, and Raj Angad Bawa plays,” Pandya said at the toss.

Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill, leading the side after Pandya's departure in 2023, expressed his excitement about playing at home and confirmed two changes to the GT lineup.

The absence of Jos Buttler, who left the tournament for international duty, was a major miss for the team.“We would've chased. If someone had said at the start of the season that we would've qualified, we would've taken it. The boys are very excited to be able to come back here in Chandigarh, it's my home town. This game is no different for us, no pressure of the knockout game or anything. Two changes - (Kusal) Mendis comes in for (Jos) Buttler and Washington (Sundar) for Arshad (Khan),” Gill said.The winner of this Eliminator will take on Punjab Kings in Qualifier 2 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.Playing XIs:Mumbai Indians: Rohit Sharma, Jonny Bairstow (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Tilak Varma, Hardik Pandya (c), Naman Dhir, Raj Bawa, Mitchell Santner, Trent Boult, Jasprit Bumrah, Richard GleesonImpact Substitutes: Krishnan Shrijith, Raghu Sharma, Robin Minz, Ashwani Kumar, Reece TopleyGujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (c), Sai Sudharsan, Kusal Mendis (wk), Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Gerald Coetzee, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh KrishnaImpact Substitutes: Sherfane Rutherford, Anuj Rawat, Mahipal Lomror, Jayant Yadav, Arshad Khan