Mumbai: Sai Sudharsan stretched to reach the ball. It was overpitched and quite wide of the off stump. It would have been best to probably let it go through to the wicketkeeper and pocket the free run from what would have been a certain wide.
However, Sudharsan went for it but the connection was nothing more than a slice. Sarfaraz Khan rushed to get into position at deep point but could only watch the ball sail over his head.
On an evening when the Gujarat Titans hosted the Chennai Super Kings in Ahmedabad for their Indian Premier League (IPL) league match, the home team seemed to do nothing wrong. That shot was Sudharsan’s fourth heave over the ropes. By that stage though, the Titans were well on their way to reaching a mammoth 229/4 after 20 overs.
It proved to be a target they would defend easily, as they beat CSK by 89 runs to finish the league stage with nine wins from 14 matches – including the double over CSK.
As has now become a norm, Sudharsan and skipper Shubman Gill got the team off to an excellent start, setting a few records along the way. Through a blend of classical strokes – and the generous extras provided by CSK – Gill and Sudharsan set a new IPL record of most century-stands by an opening pair when they crossed three-figure mark for the seventh time. They also matched Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers’ record of 10 century partnerships.
Gill was eventually dismissed for 64 from 37, hitting seven fours and three sixes. Sudharsan went back to the dugout having scored 84 off 53 balls, with seven fours and four sixes. Jos Buttler, coming in at No.3, continued the onslaught.
The English wicketkeeper-batter slammed five fours and four sixes in his quickfire unbeaten 57 from 27 to help the Titans get to the hefty total.
With the opening batters setting the tone, the opening bowlers Mohammed Siraj and Kagiso Rabada did what they do best: wreak havoc in the opposition’s batting line-up.
In the first ball of the CSK innings, Siraj pitched up a menacing outswinger that Sanju Samson nicked and Buttler gobbled up a regulation catch.
CSK captain Ruturaj Gaikwad looked threatening, but just after hitting Siraj for six in the third over, the GT pacer hit a perfect length and hit the right line to clip the top of Gaikwad’s off stump. Two balls later, Urvil Patel, who earlier this season slammed the fastest half-century in IPL history (off 13 balls, against the Lucknow Super Giants), attempted to slog another perfect-length delivery only for Prasidh Krishna to take an impressive catch at deep square leg.
Rabada then dismissed the dangerous looking Matthew Short, whose attempted slog gave Krishna a straight-forward catch at mid-on.
Then came a period of resistance from CSK – specifically, from Shivam Dube. The tall left-hander slammed 47 off 17 (with four boundaries and as many sixes).
From 63/5, Dube and Dewald Brevis put together a 50-run partnership until the experienced Rashid Khan tempted Dube to slog over mid-off, where Gill took a stunning catch while running backwards.
It was all rather straight-forward after that for the Titans.
Eventually, CSK were bundled out for 140 in 13.4 overs to mark the end of their campaign this season. GT meanwhile, march into the playoffs in style.
The win showed the intent from the GT machinery. The opening batters helped set up a strong total. Then came the turn of the opening bowlers. While Siraj started the innings with a wicket, Rabada ended it with a dismissal of his own.
It was a stunning performance all-round, yet they will still look to get better.
After Sudharsan sliced his shot for six at the start of the 19th over, his next shot was a straight-forward catch at long off.
There is always space for improvement.
