SAU vs ROI Head to Head, Playing XI, Preview, Where to Watch on TV, Online, and Live Streaming Details

Saurashtra will be hosting the Rest of India in Irani Cup 2022 final encounter at the Saurashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Rajkot on October 1.

Updated - 30 Sept 2022, 15:01 IST

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The Irani Cup 2022 match will see the 2019/20 Ranji Trophy champions Saurashtra take on the Rest of India at Rajkot's Saurashtra Cricket Association on Saturday, October 1. The prestigious Indian domestic cricket tournament will be played for the very first time after February 2019.

Vidharbha will be defending their title having registered a victory on the basis of a first-innings lead against the Rest of India. Meanwhile, Saurasthra who could not retain their Ranji Trophy title earlier this year would now be aiming to showcase consistent performances in the Irani Cup with a good show against ROI. They would be led by senior left-arm pacer Jaydev Unadkat and all eyes will be on the likes of Cheteshwar Pujara, Sheldon Jackson and Chetan Sakariya.

Pujara would be eyeing a comeback into the Indian team by performing well in the upcoming Irani Cup. Despite being axed from the national Test team, the Gujarat batter showed a lot of grit and determination by making his bat do the talking in the County Championship 2022 where he amassed 1094 runs for Sussex averaging 109.40 including five centuries and a double century in the eight matches that he was available for.

The Rest of India on the other hand would also be looking to make a solid statement. The team will be led by India's Test middle-order batter Hanuma Vihari and includes the likes of some of the key players who have been excellent in this year's domestic cricket. Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan, Yash Dhull, etc.

Other notable inclusions are India's Test specialist Mayank Agarwal, Abhimanyu Eeswaran and the promising pace duo of Kuldeep Sen and Umran Malik.

Umran, who was drafted into the Indian T20I side for his sheer pace and accuracy in IPL 2022, was expensive in the Ireland and England tours which sidelined him from the national team and he would be looking to make the most of his opportunities in the upcoming Irani Cup and prove a point to the selectors.

Pitch Conditions

The SCA Stadium is a balanced track with the bowlers expected to get some lateral movement with the new ball. Thus, the batters need to be very cautious in the initial overs after which they can dominate. Even the spinners could get some purchase from this wicket as the game progresses. Therefore, the captain winning the toss will look to bowl first.

Playing Combinations for SAU vs ROI

Saurashtra

Saurashtra have some key batters and bowlers with the ability of taking the match away from the opposition. They have a right mixture of youth and experience in their squad and the Jaydev Unadkat-led side are arguably the strongest squad on paper in this competition.

Predicted Playing XI:

Prerak Mankad, Arpit Vasavada, Cheteshwar Pujara, Sheldon Jackson, Snell Patel (wk), Chirag Jani, Dharmendrasinh Jadeja, Jaydev Unadkat (c), Harvik Desai, Kamlesh Makvana, Chetan Sakariya

Rest of India

The Rest of India also have some renowned names in domestic cricket who have done well in domestic cricket in the past. Moreover, with two express pacers in their line-up- Kuldeep Sen and Umran Malik, their pace department does look strong on paper.

Predicted Playing XI:

Mayank Agarwal, Priyank Panchal, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sarfaraz Khan, Hanuma Vihari (c), KS Bharat (wk), Jayant Yadav, R Sai Kishore, Umran Malik, Kuldeep Sen, Arzan Nagwaswalla