Here is why Harshal Patel Isn’t Playing Today’s IPL 2025 Match 19 Against GT

Why Harshal Patel Isn’t Playing Today's IPL Match 19 Against GT

The nineteenth match of IPL 2025 features the Sunrisers Hyderabad (RCB) facing off against the Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium in Hyderabad. Winning an important toss, Gujarat Titans’ captain Shubhman Gill has elected to bowl first, citing slowness in the pitch.

He noted that the pitch has black soil and that they’ll have to adapt to the conditions. However, the big news ahead of the match is the absence of Harshal Patel from the SRH playing XI. Jaydev Unadkat comes in his place.

Gujarat Titans Opt to Bowl First at Chinnaswamy

Shubhman Gill, leading the Gujarat Titans, cited the slowness of the pitch as the reason behind his decision to bowl first. He mentioned that they want to adapt to the conditions as soon as possible and want to have fun.”Looks like a slowish wicket, different from the previous two games as it’s a black soil surface.

Generally it’s a good wicket. We have been playing well, need to adapt to the conditions as soon as possible. I think we had good memories in the past, we are continuing to have good fun. Washington comes in for Arshad Khan.” Gill mentioned at the toss.

Gujarat Titans are playing with key bowlers like Rashid Khan, Ishant Sharma, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna and Sai Kishore.

Cummins happy to bat first

Pat Cummins, the SRH captain, mentioned that his side is happy to bat first. He said the team wants to be aggressive and focus on their strengths. “Happy to bat first. We want to be aggressive. It’s a ground we like batting at, we scored 280 at this venue not so long ago. We need to play our best. Need to focus on our strengths. Harshal Patel misses as he is ill, Jaydev Unadkat comes in”, Cummins said.

Why Harshal Patel is not playing today

Harshal Patel, the leading wicket-taker for the SRH, misses out from the playing XI today. Captain Pat Cummins mentioned that he was ill. Experienced bowler Jaydev Unadkat replaces him. SRH camp has not officially mentioned the details of the situation or how long it’ll take for Patel to recover.

It’ll be a big blow to the Sunrisers Hyderabad, who have already been struggling with their bowling attack. They have the worst economy (10.83) and the average (41.15) for any team in the season. In Patel’s absence, SRH might find it even tougher to control the flow of runs.