Lucknow: Gujarat Titans’ spearhead Prasidh Krishna produced a match-defining spell of 4/28 on Sunday before skipper Shubman Gill and Jos Buttler smacked sparkling half centuries to help the visitors beat Lucknow Super Giants by seven wickets in the only afternoon match this season for the hosts.
India pacer Krishna’s haul lifted his season tally to 10 wickets in four matches. He has been among the most effective bowlers this season, showing the pace, bounce and control that have long marked his IPL career and his spell on Sunday helped GT restrict LSG for 164/8 before chasing down the total with eight balls to spare.
Gill’s decision to bowl after winning the toss paid rich dividends, setting a chaseable target at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium. This was LSG’s second loss at home this season, and sixth consecutive overall.
Though GT were off to a slow start with the side scoring 45 in Powerplay—LSG were 60/2 after six overs—Gill and Buttler stitched together an 84-run second wicket partnership to put the side on the winning track. Gill made 56 (40b, 6×4, 1×6) and Buttler 60 (37b, 11×4) as LSG bowlers struggling for accuracy as they defended a modest total.
Though both the batters departed in quick succession, GT were only 30 runs from the target. It left Washington Sundar (21*-13b, 2×4, 1×6) and Rahul Tewatia (10*-8b, 1×4) to complete the formality.
It was Krishna’s game on Sunday as after being introduced in the seventh over, he turned the game on its head. His high-arm action generated steep bounce as he removed opener Aiden Markram (30 off 21b) on the last ball of his first over, the ball seaming away late to catch the edge.
Returning for his second spell, Krishna foxed Ayush Badoni (9) with a skiddy knuckle ball that held its line, before castling Nicholas Pooran (19) with a vicious in-swinging yorker that tailed in, after he had made an aggressive start against Rashid Khan. Krishna capped his demolition with the wicket of Mukul Choudhary’s wicket (18-14b), fresh from his sensational knock against Kolkata Knight Rider, edging an attempted pull off a bouncer into the pitch.
Krishna’s ability to vary pace—mixing 145kph thunderbolts with cutters—stifled LSG’s momentum, finishing with an economy of seven.
LSG’s innings flickered early on but crumbled under GT’s pressure. Mitchell Marsh’s explosive start (11 – 4b, 1×4, 1×6) ended courtesy Kagiso Rabada, while Rishabh Pant (18) fell to Mohammed Siraj—he miscued a wobble-seam delivery to be caught at mid-off—after a promising stand with Markram pushed the score to 60/2 in six overs.
Lower-order cameos from George Linde (16 off 10) and Mohammed Shami (12 off 5) nudged the total past 160, but Ashok Sharma’s clinical spell (2/32) at the death capped GT’s control. Impact player Linde’s brisk knock (3×4) promised a late surge, but Sharma claimed him in the last over.
Disappointment was writ large on the face of LSG skipper Pant after the match. “Definitely not enough runs. They bowled well. I think on a wicket like this, a score like 170-180 is a really good score. But wickets kept falling and they put enough pressure on us,” he told the broadcaster.
“There were opportunities in the game we couldn’t grab. Definitely we have a great line-up, but the tournament is just starting. We are not putting pressure on anyone, especially the senior guys. They know what they do. The trust is there in the camp.”
Both the teams are in mid table with four points, after two wins and losses apiece.
