The Gujarat Titans put up a strong total of 224 for 6, with impressive contributions from Gill (76), Buttler (64), and Sudharsan (48). Despite Unadkat’s solid effort with the ball taking 3 wickets for just 35 runs, the Sunrisers Hyderabad will have a challenging task ahead as they aim to chase down this formidable target.
GT’s trio of top three players maintained their strong form, contributing 48, 76, and 24 runs respectively to their team’s total of 224 against SRH. B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler, and Shubman Gill currently hold the first, third, and fourth spots on the IPL leader board for runs. In this match, Gill hit 76 runs in just 38 deliveries, Sudharsan scored 48 off 23 balls, and Buttler added 64 runs off 37 balls.
Buttler’s crucial innings coincided with the SRH bowlers finding their rhythm. At the outset, they delivered arguably their weakest performance of the season. Mohammed Shami’s pace was lacking and he struggled with his line on either side of the wicket; Pat Cummins gifted three half volleys in just one over; and Harshal Patel pitched multiple full tosses. This led to GT’s largest powerplay score of 82 for 0, without having to take any risks. An indication of their lack of effort was that only four runs were scored through false shots.
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Shami gave Gill a leg-side opportunity in the opening over, but Sai Sudharsan took advantage and scored five fours in the third. Cummins also allowed Gill to hit two fours and a six by bowling in his preferred area. It was not until Zeeshan Ansari caught Sai Sudharsan behind square that the damage was finally contained.
As a result, there were two consecutive overs without a boundary. However, Gill and Buttler regained their momentum. The initial unforced mistake by GT occurred in the 13th over when Gill casually took a single, leading to Heinrich Klaasen executing a run-out similar to that of MS Dhoni’s signature move.
Despite facing a challenging pitch, Washington Sundar struggled to gauge its pace, indicating that GT had posted a formidable score. Nonetheless, in scorching temperatures exceeding 40 degrees, a weary Buttler managed to find the energy to hit multiple sixes and propel GT beyond 220 runs.
