Stormy weather has delayed Gujarat Titans’ (GT) arrival in Ahmedabad for Sunday’s final. This leaves them with less than 24 hours to prepare for their third IPL final, on home turf, against defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).

GT were slated to depart Chandigarh on Saturday afternoon via a charter, following their win against Rajasthan Royals in Qualifier 2 on Friday. However, torrential downpour in north-western India, centred around Punjab and Rajasthan, meant airport authorities couldn’t issue take-off clearance in Chandigarh, delaying several flights out of the city. GT are likely to arrive in Ahmedabad only after 10pm on Saturday.

This is the first time a team has had to travel a day before the final, after the BCCI opted to host three playoffs across three venues as opposed to two earlier. In contrast, RCB arrived in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, and had two solid training sessions in the lead-up to their second straight IPL final.

“Yes, because after Qualifier 1 we got enough time to rest and recover. At the same time, GT are coming straight from Qualifier 2,” Patidar said when asked if their early arrival was a positive. “There is some sort of advantage, but not a huge one because both teams are very good and have played excellent cricket.”

Sunday’s match will be Ahmedabad’s fourth IPL final. As things stand, the forecast seems clear. However, the final involving Chennai Super Kings and Gujarat Titans in 2023 was severely rain-affected, requiring the match to go into a reserve day. The game eventually ended in the wee hours on the third day after the organisers were forced to apply a two-hour extension to complete the final.

GT are eyeing their second title. Having won in 2022, they came within one ball of defending their crown against CSK, before Ravindra Jadeja’s heroics helped deliver a fifth title for the MS Dhoni-led team.