Faf du Plessis is in great form, and according to Manjrekar, the Bangalore-based franchise has a powerful bowling unit this season. He believes that the side has what it takes to make it far in IPL 2023. Speaking ahead of IPL 2023, he said:
“Yes, I feel Virat Kohli’s dream of winning the trophy will come true this time. They have a wonderful bowling attack. If Faf du Plessis scores runs, they will have a great chance.”
He has picked Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), Chennai Super Kings (CSK), and Rajasthan Royals (RR) as the strongest contenders for a spot in the playoffs for this season’s highly lucrative league.
“I believe that Chandrakant Pandit will likely make most of the decisions” – S Manjrekar
Sanjay Manjrekar stated that Rana and Co. will thrive as the majority of the choices will be taken by their head coach Chandrakant Pandit, which may potentially aid in the two-time champions’ revival. Manjrekar further added:
“Yes, definitely, because I believe that Chandrakant Pandit will likely make most of the decisions from outside.”
Manjrekar predicted that RR’s Jos Buttler and Yuzvendra Chahal could once again be the leading run-getter and highest wicket-taker, respectively. Buttler won the Orange Cap for his 863 runs, while Chahal earned the Purple Cap for taking 27 wickets. He also suggested that Sunrisers Hyderabad’s (SRH) Umran Malik could hit the impressive speed of 160 kmph in IPL 2023, having clocked 157 kmph in a previous match.
The Gujarat Titans, the defending champions of IPL 2023, will face the Chennai Super Kings, captained by MS Dhoni, in the fixture match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Friday, March 31. Manjrekar commented that no one could accurately predict Dhoni’s future in the Indian Premier League.