IPL 2024: Tewatia, Kishore shine as GT outclass PBKS to join mid-table muddle
Gujarat recovered from their defeat against Delhi after beating Punjab by 3 wickets on Sunday at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, Chandigarh.
With the win, Shubman Gill and Co. moved to sixth in the table with 8 points. The Kings, on the other hand, slumped to yet another loss and kept languishing at the bottom half of the table.
After being asked to bat first, PBKS got off to a brisk start thanks to their openers Sam Curran and Prabhsimran Singh. The duo put on 52 runs for the opening wicket off 5.3 overs. Prabhsimran was the one who injected momentum into the innings with a quick-fire knock of 35 off 21 balls with 3 fours and as many sixes.
But after Mohit Sharma got the wicket of Prabhsimran, PBKS lost their way completely and struggled their way to 142. The hosts were reduced to 99 for 7 in 15.2 overs as none of the Punjab batters were able to make an impact.
It was Harpreet Brar, who used the long handle to good effect and made sure that PBKS put up a respectable total on the board. The left-handed batter scored 29 runs off 12 balls with 4 fours and a six, giving the PBKS innings the finishing kick that was needed.
Sai Kishore was the pick of the bowlers for GT after he finished with impressive figures of 4-0-33-4. Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad kept a check on the run-scoring as they picked up 3 wickets and a combined economy rate of 4.37.
Tewatia plays a handy cameo
The run-chase was expected to be straightforward for the Titans, but that was not the case. In the powerplay, GT scored 44 runs and lost the wicket of Wriddhiman Saha, who made 35 runs off 29 balls. Liam Livingstone turned the match around in the middle overs after he got the wickets of Shubman Gill and David Miller in quick succession.
Gill scored 35 runs off 29 balls with 5 fours, but got out at a critical stage. Sai Sudharsan never looked in his zone as he made 31 runs off 34 balls before Sam Curran rattled his woodwork. With the required run-rate almost touching 9, Rahul Tewatia came to the party.
Tewatia stayed not out on 36 runs off 18 balls with the help of 7 fours. Apart from Livingstone, Harshal Patel was also on top of his game. The pacer finished with figures of 3-0-15-3, but to no avail.