Gujarat Titans defeat Chennai Super Kings by 35 runs in Ahmedabad

The Gujarat Titans beat the Chennai Super Kings by 35 runs in Ahmedabad. CSK were reduced to 196 for 8 in 20 overs while chasing 232. Gaikwad won the toss and elected to bowl. Captain Shubman Gill blasted a scorching century, while B Sai Sudharsan scored his first IPL century, as Gujarat Titans defeated Chennai Super Kings on Friday to stay in the play-off chase. Sudharsan (103 off 51 balls) matched captain Gill (104 off 55 deliveries) stroke for stroke as the two openers pounded off damaging hundreds to drive GT to 231/3.

The host team’s bowlers then held the reigning champions to 196/8, despite battling fifties from Daryl Mitchell (63) and Moeen Ali (56). When sent into bat, Gill and Sudharsan put on a six-hitting display, scoring 210 runs, the greatest partnership for any wicket in the IPL this season. They also matched Quinton de Kock and KL Rahul’s highest-ever IPL opening partnership.

Gujarat is almost about to stay alive in the tournament! Although they may not have complete control over the game, they can nevertheless cause significant damage to many teams, as they did to Chennai in this one. The first half was dominated by Gill and Sudarshan, and their bowlers followed suit in the second. Chennai suffered a major setback at a critical point in the season, lowering their NRR, which is not ideal for them.

• Toss: Chennai Super Kings won the toss and elected to field
• Result: Gujarat Titans beat Chennai Super Kings by 35 runs
• Player of the Match: Shubman Gill
• Umpire: KN Ananthapadmanabhan (IND), Nikhil Patwardhan (IND) and Jayaraman Madanagopal (IND)
• Referee: Pankaj Dharmani (IND)

Shubman Gill, Player of the Match: “It’s just a cramp, nothing more. When you have so many people supporting you, it gets much easier. Loved the freeness of it, we didn’t have targets in mind, we maximised every over and opportunity in front of us. We have a good camaraderie between us, we run the twos, we understand each other well. In terms of numbers, definitely it is. Mohit bhai has done it for us in the last couple of years and has done it tremendously for us. He was a revelation for us, one or two bad games happen. Honestly at one point 250 was for the taking and we fell short. In the last two-three overs they bowled well. I thought we were 10-15 short, not in terms of the match but in terms of net run rate.”

Rashid Khan: “They were amazing, we love to see them batting, Gill and Sudharsan, two of the best innings we’ve watched. Happy to get a couple of wickets after two wicketless games, I had a back issue and some shoulder problem. Hoping to be 100% fit. Once Dhoni comes into the stadium anywhere around the world, it’s a different kind of love. We’re so lucky to be playing with him. We also get every off him in those kind of moments.”

Gaikwad: “Fielding let us down a little bit, we gave away 10-15 runs. Execution-wise we were good but they played really well. Two batters were exceptional and it’s hard to control runs around the park. Our next game is a day game in Chennai, it’s going to be tough against a tough team.”