The Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, Chandigarh, hosted the 37th IPL 2024 match between the Gujarat Titans and the Punjab Kings. After winning the toss and deciding to bat first, the Punjab Kings got off to a solid start but soon found themselves up against Gujarat’s well-organized bowling assault.
The Punjab Kings could only muster 142 runs in 20 overs, despite major contributions from Prabhsimran and Harpreet Brar, who scored 35 and 29, respectively. Sai Kishore was a standout performer for Gujarat, taking four vital wickets.
The Gujarat Titans, chasing 143 runs, were early on down, but they were able to stay in the game thanks to strong batting from Shubman Gill, Sai Kishore, and Rahul Tewatia. The Gujarat Titans won by a thrilling three wickets after they showed incredible coolness in the face of extreme pressure. They chased down the score with five balls remaining. Rahul Tewatia’s undefeated 36 assured Gujarat victory, while Gill and Sai Sudharsan added 35 and 31 runs, respectively.
Speaking Points
Sai Kishore’s excellent bowling destroyed the Punjab Kings innings.
With an impressive four-wicket haul, Ravi Sai Kishore proved to be the match’s most outstanding bowler. Punjab started their innings off well, but Sai Kishore’s outstanding performance in the middle overs broke their flow, stopping them in their tracks and keeping them from reaching a dominant score. He was dismissed for a lower-than-expected total, but his accuracy and experience were crucial in keeping Punjab to a low score.
Also read: Navjot Singh Sidhu defends Virat Kohli following his contentious dismissal against KKR, saying it is “against the spirit of the game.”
2. Tewaita puts a stylish end to everything.
In this exciting, low-scoring match, Rahul Tewatia stood out among the batsmen. Though the game was close when he joined the field, his cool head and a combination of strength and grace in his 36-run innings off just 18 deliveries turned the tide in Gujarat’s favor. Thanks to his outstanding batting, Gujarat was able to break their losing run and secure the victory with relative ease.
Losing skipper Sam Curran:
“I think so (we were 10-15 short). The effort with the ball was incredible, the commitment and fight was amazing, but it was not enough. The Afghanistan spinners are world class bowlers and Sai Kishore bowled really well, credit to them. That is the third time we have used that pitch, anything above 160 would have been a par total but we still fought well. Prabhsimran played really well in the powerplay but unfortunately we lost a cluster of wickets after that. Now we know what to do, we have to win every game.”
Winning skipper Shubman Gill:
“Would have liked to finish it a bit early, but good to get those two points. (Captaincy) It’s been very exciting for me to be able to take up this role. Except for the over-rate, everything has been good. When I am out there batting, I just want to play as a batter, I don’t want to think too much about the captaincy. He (Livingstone) was trying to rush me there but the ball that I got out, I would have made that decision even if I was batting as a batsman or even without that little bit that we had (small altercation).”
Player of the Match: R. Sai Kishore
“Just trying to give my 120% for the team, playing after 20-25 days, so just wanted to go there, enjoy myself and give my everything. Ashish Nehra has created a beautiful environment where we can be fearless and play for the team no matter what the result is. He told me to enjoy myself and gave me a lot of freedom to express myself. Instinctively I felt into the wicket and just change of pace was the way to go here, it worked out beautifully. Credit to everyone who showed up today. Rahul played an amazing knock once again. Rashid and Noor bowled beautifully, overall complete team effort.”
India
