16th match, PBKS vs GT, IPL 2022: GT won by 6 wickets
The Gujarat Titans (GT) won their third consecutive game in the TATA Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 on Friday at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai, defeating the Punjab Kings (PBKS) by 6 wickets. Gujarat Titans successfully chased down the goal of 190 in a game that went down to the penultimate delivery, thanks to Shubman Gill's beautiful 96 at the top and Rahul Tewatia's final over heroics with two sixes in the final two deliveries that secured the chase. Gujarat Titans lost Mathew Wade early in their chase for 190 runs as the left-handed batter was caught behind. Shubman Gill, on the other hand, performed exquisite strokes at the top and had wonderful timing with the ball.
GT were 53/1 at the end of the powerplay when Sai Sudharsan, who was playing his first innings, started boldly by hammering two fours. The second-wicket partnership was up for grabs, and GT were 94/1 at the midway point. While Sudharsan played second fiddle, Gill kept the tempo with GT by continuing the flow of boundaries from one end. After Sudharsan was caught by Mayank Agarwal off Rahul Chahar's bowling, PBKS broke the partnership, and GT needed 56 runs off the remaining five overs. Hardik Pandya, the GT captain, smashed successive fours against Rahul Chahar in the 17th over, scoring 13 runs.
Pandya smashed two fours against Rabada in the penultimate over with 32 required off the final two overs, but Rabada dismissed Gill for 96. In the final over, GT needed to score 19 runs. While Hardik Pandya was dismissed on the opening ball, Rahul Tewatia completed the chase with two sixes in the final two deliveries. Punjab Kings, who were given the opportunity to bat first, made one change: Jonny Bairstow was picked in the eleven. The Gujarat Titans got off to a good start with the ball, as skipper Hardik Pandya caught the opposition captain Mayank Agarwal inside the circle for a 5-yard penalty.
In the fourth over, Dhawan smashed two fours, but PBKS lost their second wicket when Jonny Bairstow was caught at short third-man by Lockie Ferguson. Both - Gill and Sudharsan – hit sixes as Gill passed fifty in the ninth over and added two more superbly timed fours. Before Liam Livingstone and opener Shikhar Dhawan stitched a crucial fifty-run partnership for the third wicket, PBKS were 43-2 at the end of powerplay. Despite a valiant attempt in the deep, Livingstone, who was responsible for the majority of the hitting, was nearly caught by Hardik Pandya following his six. After Dhawan was caught behind for 35, Rashid Khan brought the partnership to an end.
Jitesh Sharma, the new man in, smashed two sixes and a four to help Livingstone, who was on fire at one end as the 13th over produced 24 runs. Darshan Nalkande regained control of the game with GT after dismissing Jitesh Sharma and Odean Smith in consecutive deliveries. Shahrukh Khan hit consecutive sixes against Mohammad Shami in the 15th over, scoring 18 runs. In the 16th over, Rashid Khan dismissed both Livingstone and Shahrukh Khan. After Rabada was run-out in the 17th over, PBKS lost their eighth wicket. PBKS concluded the first innings with a total of 189/9 after Shami removed Vaibhav Arora's stumps, but Rahul Chahar contributed important runs with two fours and a six.
Scores: Gujarat Titans 190-4 (Shubman Gill 96, Sai Sudharsan 35; Kagiso Rabada 2-35) beat Punjab Kings 189-9 (Liam Livingstone 64, Shikhar Dhawan 35; Rashid Khan 3-22) by 6 wickets.
