The finishers once again proved to be the game-changers for Gujarat Titans (GT) as the Hardik Pandya-led side handed a 6-wicket defeat to Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the 43rd match of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. Having lost 4 wickets for 95 runs in the 13th over, the odds were stacked against GT. Courtesy of David Miller’s and Rahul Tewatia’s heroics, the Hardik Pandya-led side chased down the target of 171 in the final over.
Gujarat Titans got a vital start in the chase with openers Shubman Gill and Wriddhiman Saha adding 51 runs for the first wicket. The partnership came to an end when Wanindu Hasranga got Saha caught by Rajat Patidar. An over later, Shahbaz Ahmed trapped Shubman Gill in front of the stumps.
The left-arm spinner scalped another big scalp and dismissed Hardik Pandya in his next over to leave GT reeling at 78/3. In the 13th over, GT suffered another blow as Hasaranga got Sai Sudarshan caught for 20 off 14 by wicketkeeper Anuj Rawat.
With the asking rate increasing with every over, the onus was on Tewatia (43* off 25) and Miller (39* off 24) to do the job. Once again, they proved the management’s decision to invest in finishers correct by completing the chase in the final over. The duo put on a match-winning partnership of 79 runs.
Earlier, RCB chose to bat first in the afternoon fixture. After losing an early wicket of Faf du Plessis, RCB rebounded with Rajat Patidar and Virat Kohli adding 99 runs for the 2nd wicket. Kohli returned to form and scored a half-century, ending his wait of 15 innings.
Even though Kohli’s return to form was the major talking point of the day, Patidar stole the thunder with a knock of 52 off 32. The right-handed batsman took the lead role even with Kohli at the other end and played his shots. His crucial knock included 2 sixes and 5 boundaries. He struck at 162.50.
Following his dismissal, Glenn Maxwell took the onus and played an 18-ball cameo, in which he hit 33 runs. The right-hander struck at 183.33 and gave the finishing touch to RCB, which saw them breach the 150-run mark. With the ball, Pradeep Sangwan shone for GT and bowled a tidy spell of 4-0-19-2.
Table-toppers GT now 8 wins fro 9 matches while RCB continue to sit at the 5th spot with 5 wins from 10 matches.
