Gujarat Titans humble Rajasthan Royals with 58-run win as bowlers shine bright

AHMEDABAD(Gujarat):The Gujarat Titans (GT) produced a commanding performance to defeat the Rajasthan Royals (RR) by 58 runs at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Wednesday. After Sai Sudharsan’s explosive 82 powered the GT to a formidable total of 217/6, the bowlers took charge and collectively dismantled the Royals’ batting lineup, bowling them out for 159 in 19.2 overs.

Chasing a steep target of 218, Rajasthan got off to a poor start. Arshad Khan struck early, dismissing the dangerous Yashasvi Jaiswal for 6, reducing RR to 10/1 in 1.2 overs. Nitish Rana didn’t last long either, falling for 1 run as the Royals slumped to 12/2 in 2.2 overs.

Captain Sanju Samson and Riyan Parag attempted to steady the ship with a 48-run partnership, but Kulwant Khejroliya, coming in as an impact player, broke the stand by removing Parag for 26. Dhruv Jurel followed soon after, scoring 5, leaving RR struggling at 68/4.

Sanju Samson, who looked promising with a 41-run knock, was eventually dismissed by Prasidh Krishna. From there, wickets continued to tumble. Impact player Shubham Dubey managed 1 run before falling to Rashid Khan. Jofra Archer and Shimron Hetmyer were Krishna’s next victims, with Hetmyer top-scoring for the Royals with a fighting 52.

Tushar Deshpande and Maheesh Theekshana were removed by Sai Kishore, who struck late but made a strong impact, wrapping up the innings.
While every GT bowler chipped in, Prasidh Krishna was the standout performer, finishing with impressive figures of 3/24. Rashid Khan and Sai Kishore picked up two wickets apiece, while Kulwant Khejroliya, Arshad Khan, and Mohammed Siraj took one each.

It was a clinical display from the Titans, who outplayed the Royals in all departments to seal a well-deserved victory.

Earlier, Sanju Samson won the toss and opted to bowl first in the match against the hosts, the Gujarat Titans.

Batters Shubman Gill and Sai Sudarshan came out in the middle to open the innings for the Gujarat side, but they didn’t have the start they wanted as Gill was sent back to the pavilion after scoring just 2 runs in the third over of the innings.

The Gujarat side touched the 50-run mark in the sixth over. The 50th run came through a wide, which was bowled by right-arm seamer Sandeep Sharma.

Following skipper’s departure, right-hand batter Jos Buttler came in the middle to bat along with Sudarshan. Both players built a marvellous partnership of 80 runs from 47 balls before Buttler (36 runs off 25 balls) was sent back to the dressing room in the 10th over by spinner Maheesh Theekshana.

Shahrukh Khan came to bat next, following the wicketkeeper-batter’s dismissal. The Shubman Gill-led side touched the 100-run mark in the 11th over as Sudarshan took a double on the last ball of the over, which was bowled by speedster Jofra Archer.

Shahrukh and Sudarshan built a magnificent partnership of 62 runs in just 34 balls before the former was dismissed in the 16th over at the score of 154 by Theekshana.In the end, Rahul Tewatia (24* runs off 12 balls) and Rahid Khan (12 runs from 4 balls) scored some crucial runs for the side, which took the Gujarat side to 217 runs with the loss of six wickets in their 20 overs.

Sai Sudharsan was the top scorer for GT, as he made 82 off 53 deliveries, which included eight boundaries and three maximums.

For the Rajasthan Royals, two wickets each were snapped by Tushar Deshpande (2/53) & Maheesh Theekshana (2/54) and one wicket each was grabbed by Jofra Archer (1/30) and Sandeep Sharma (1/41) in their respective spells of four overs each.

Brief score: Gujarat Titans 217/6 (Sai Sudharsan 82, Shahrukh Khan 36; Tushar Deshpande 2/53) vs. Rajasthan Royals 159 (Shimron Hetmyer 52, Sanju Samson 41; Prasidh Krishna 3/24). (ANI)