Jaipur, May 5 (IANS): Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has praised Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson for his way of handling a high-quality spin troika of Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal and Adam Zampa in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023.

Rajasthan, after losing to Mumbai Indians in their last match by six wickets, will be hosting table-toppers Gujarat Titans at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Friday. Both teams, which faced off in IPL 20222 final in Ahmedabad, are the front-runners in the IPL 2023 playoffs race.

"Sanju Samson has matured as a captain. He uses his spinners very well. Only a good captain can play with three spinners and use them smartly," Shastri was quoted as saying by Star Sports.

Shastri also backed Gujarat to be the favourites to win IPL 2023 due to the balance the Hardik Pandya-led team has and the way it has performed collectively as a unit. Just like Rajasthan, Gujarat Titans are coming into Friday's match on the back of a five-run defeat to Delhi Capitals at home.

"Looking at the current form and team standings, I believe that Gujarat will win the trophy. There is consistency and flexibility in this team and there are seven-eight players who are performing consistently. The players in this Gujarat side complement each other," he concluded.