With nothing but that feeling of pride to play for when the Gujarat Lions host the Delhi Daredevils in Kanpur in IPL 2017, changes in the playing XI could be the order of the day.
Considering both teams are out of contention for a place in the IPL 2017 playoffs, there really is no reason why the sides cannot make a few changes and give some of the players who haven't had too much of an opportunity a chance to make an impact in the Indian Premier League.
The Gujarat Lions are currently sixth in the IPL 2017 points table, while the Delhi Daredevils are just below them, with a similar record.
GL were beaten comprehensively by the Delhi Daredevils the last time these two teams met, with Rishabh Pant and Sanju Samson putting on one of the most exciting partnerships of IPL 2017.
However, the Gujarat Lions bounced back with an impressive win over Kings XI Punjab, and in that game, they went with just three overseas players, owing to the fact that they have suffered so many injuries.
Brendon McCullum and Andrew Tye are out of IPL 2017, while Jason Roy will not return to the Gujarat Lions squad after finishing his England engagements, with the opener, who hardly played when he was in India, instead choosing to play domestic 50-over cricket over in the UK.
GL went with just three overseas players in the last game, and since it still gave them a win, they might go with the same playing XI.
They could also give some of the players who have hardly played in IPL 2017 an opportunity – Chirag Suri, Pratham Singh, Jaydev Shah and Shelley Shaurya are the players yet to play a single game – but who those players could be is a difficult guess to make.
The Delhi Daredevils were in contention for a place in the playoffs until their batsmen suffered another meltdown.
After two brilliant batting performances against the Sunrisers Hyderabad and Gujarat Lions, DD crashed to 66 all out, while chasing another big score, this time against the Mumbai Indians.
DD have fewer options in the overseas department for their final three matches, after Chris Morris, Kagiso Rabada left to join up with the South Africa team while Angelo Mathews is now in a Sri Lanka training camp.
Sam Billings, who was expected to return for these three matches, after playing for England against Ireland, will not feature either, since their hopes of making the playoffs are gone.
DD still have a few solid options, though, in Pat Cummins, Carlos Brathwaite, Corey Anderson, Marlon Samuels and Ben Hilfenhaus, who is yet to play a game in IPL 2017.
The first four are likely to play, although giving Hilfenhaus a go might not be a bad idea.
Expected playing XI:
Gujarat Lions: Dwayne Smith, Ishan Kishan, Suresh Raina (C), Aaron Finch, Ravindra Jadeja, James Faulkner, Dhawal Kulkarni, Pradeep Sangwan, Basil Thampi, Ankit Soni.
Delhi Daredevils: Sanju Samson, Karun Nair, Rishabh Pant, Shreyas Iyer, Marlon Samuels, Corey Anderson, Carlos Brathwaite, Pat Cummins, Amit Mishra, Shahbaz Nadeem, Zaheer Khan.
