19 hours Ago
New Delhi: Twenty20 matches are rarely ever straightforward. There’s always a collapse or a surge that pundits and fans fail to factor. It makes the game unpredictable and exciting.
But then there are games that deviate from the norm. Gujarat Titans’ facile eight-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Wednesday was one of those. From start to finish, there was only going to be one winner.
Right from the very start, GT seized control. They won the toss, chose to field, and for the first seven overs of the match they were brilliant. By the time the dust settled, RCB were 48/4 and already in need of something special.
The first to fall was Virat Kohli (7), who pulled a delivery from left-arm pacer Arshad Khan straight to Ishant Sharma in the deep. Mohammed Siraj, a former RCB star, then sent back Devdutt Padikkal (4) and Phil Salt (14) in quick succession. When skipper Rajat Patidar (12) was trapped lbw by Ishant in the seventh over, the hosts were in big trouble.
They managed to somehow find their way out of it but for that they need to thank luck (for the missed chances and stumpings), Liam Livingstone (54) and Tim David’s late blitz which saw him make 32 off 18 balls. GT, though, will be worried about Rashid Khan’s form. His four overs went for 54 runs and that is very unlike the Afghanistan leg-spinner’s usual returns.
Come the later rounds, they will need to have their ace firing on all cylinders. RCB eventually ended up with 169/8 and it was the kind of total that demanded quick wickets from their bowlers. To their credit, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood beat the bat plenty of times but the vital edge eluded them.
GT got through the first four overs before Shubman Gill (14) was caught in the deep off Bhuvneshwar. But Sai Sudharsan (49) and Jos Buttler (73*) put on a brilliant 75-run stand off just 47 balls to settle the nerves. It started with Sudharsan, who broke the shackles with some delectable strokeplay.
He added in the odd ramp to keep the bowlers honest and once Buttler got into the act as well, there was little that RCB could do. Sudharsan’s wicket on 107 gave RCB a tiny window of opportunity but Buttler shut it emphatically. He played with the kind of abandon that has helped him earn the reputation as one of the most destructive white-ball batters in the world.
His 73 was laced with 5 fours and 6 sixes and nothing RCB did seemed to trouble him on the day. After the fall of Sudharsan, Buttler found an ally in Sherfane Rutherford (30 off 18) and finished off the game without much fuss. “There was a bit in the wicket, so the two openers played sensibly to take the sting out of that and set up the chase,” said Buttler after the game.
“Tried to play with freedom and intent – had a few months of unenjoyable cricket, trying to give my best and excited to be here.” Buttler added: “We have got a lot of bases covered – fantastic seam-bowling unit, the spinners and a fantastic batting unit as well.” The loss means that both RCB and GT find themselves on four points after three games.
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