By IBNS Apr 14, 2023
Mohali/UNI: A brilliant 49-ball 69 runs by Shubman Gill helped Gujarat Titans defeat Punjab Kings by six wickets in a thriller here on Thursday.
Batting first, Punjab set a target of 154 runs for Gujarat, who got past it with a ball to spare.
Though the total was not formidable, the Punjab bowlers made the match exciting with their performance.
When Gujarat needed seven runs in the last over, Sam Curan cleaned up Gill in the second ball after conceding just one run in the first ball.
Rahul Tewatia and David Miller could only manage one run each of the third and fourth balls, but Tewatia displayed incredible composure and scooped the fifth ball to fine leg to seal the win for Gujarat.
Gujarat are now placed at the third spot in the points table with three wins from four matches, while Punjab are sixth with two wins and two losses from four matches.
Opener Wriddhiman Saha gave a rollicking start, getting 18 runs in the third over off Arshdeep Singh.
Saha scored 30 runs off 19 balls with five boundaries, before he was holed out at deep backward square off a bouncer sent in by Kagiso Rabada.
After Sahas departure, Gujarat managed to score 56 runs in the powerplay and Gill held the innings at one end as the run-rate slowed down. He also shared a 41-run partnership for the second wicket with Sai Sudarshan.
Gill completed his half-century in 40 balls, although Sudarshan (20 balls, 19 runs) and Hardik Pandya (11 balls, 8 runs) returned to the pavilion without making a big contribution.
Punjab had kept Gujarats innings under control by hitting fours and sixes, but not being able to take Gills wicket proved to be their undoing.
When Gujarat needed 25 runs in three overs, Gill scored 12 runs by hitting Rabada for a six and a four.
However, Punjab left no stone unturned to make the match exciting from here as well.
Arshdeep conceded just six runs in the 19th over, after which Gujarat were seven runs away from victory in the last over.
Curan also took a wicket by giving just one run in the first two balls. He bowled two unmistakable yorkers on the next two balls, but Tewatia showed the direction of fine leg by sitting on the fifth ball on his knees.
The ball dodged the fielder and went towards the boundary line and Gujarat won.
Harpreet Brar was the best bowler for Punjab, taking one wicket for just 20 runs in four overs. After conceding 18 runs in the first over, Arshdeep bowled tightly and conceded only 33 runs in four overs taking one wicket.
Kagiso Rabada took one wicket and gave 36 runs in four overs.
Earlier, Gujarat won the toss and elected to bowl and Mohammed Shami got the team off to a strong start by dismissing Prabhsimran Singh in the very first over.
Captain Shikhar Dhawan hit two fours to defuse the pressure but Joshua Little sent him back to the dugout for eight runs.
Despite losing both openers, Matthew Short displayed aggression and took Punjab to a score of 52/2 in the powerplay.
Short scored 36 off 24 balls hitting six fours and a six but fell victim to Rashid Khan before making any major impact. Rashid kept the run rate in check in the middle overs with a good mix of spin.
Mohit Sharma, making his debut for Gujarat, supported him well and also took the important wicket of Jitesh Sharma (23 balls, 25 runs).
After scoring only 99 runs for the loss of four wickets in 15 overs, Punjab wanted to up the ante in the last overs, and in this process lost wickets.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa, who came to bat at number four, fell victim to Alzarri Joseph after scoring 20 runs off 26 balls. Mohit Sharma hunted who scored 22 runs off 22 balls.
Shahrukh Khan played a quick inning of 22 runs off nine balls with two fours and a six to take Punjab past 150 runs.
Shah Rukh and Rishi Dhawan were run out in the last over, while Harpreet Brar returned unbeaten after scoring eight runs.
Shami (one wicket) was Gujarats most expensive bowler, conceding 44 runs in four overs.
Mohit took two wickets for just 18 runs in four overs, while Little, Joseph and Rashid got one success each.