IPL: Gujarat spinners strangles Punjab for a 3-wicket win

Mullanpur: When Gujarat Titans deployed their spinners well, they caught Punjab Kings and strangled their batters to make a 3-wicket victory over the latter in match 37 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium here on Sunday. Gujarat's Sai Kishore took four Punjab batters, imparting severe pressure on the hosts, IANS reported.

Electing to bat first after stand-in skipper Sam Curran had won the toss, Punjab Kings made a super start, reaching fifty in the Power-play before Gujarat Titans skipper Shubman Gill unleashed his spinners. On a pitch that has been used more than once this season, the Gujarat spinners used the slow turn and low bounce to great effect as they destroyed the PBKS top and middle orders to reduce them to 99/7 in the 16th over.

Punjab Kings were eventually bowled out for 142 in 20 overs, and Gujarat Titans survived some anxious moments before riding on a blinder of an innings by Rahul Tewatia, 36 not out off 18 balls, and patient knocks by skipper Gill (35) and Sai Sudharsan (31) to reach 146/7 in 19.1 overs and win the match with five balls to spare. Harshal Patel claimed 3-15, and Liam Livingstone (2-19) shared five wickets between them to create some stumbling blocks, but GT eventually managed to survive the hiccups.

The win took GT to eight points as they moved to the sixth spot on the points table, trailing Lucknow Super Giants and Chennai Super Kings on inferior net run rate. All three teams are on eight points. PBKS remained in the 9th spot with four points from eight matches.

It was Sai Kishore who made the win possible with sensational figures of 4-33 off four overs, while Afghan left-arm wrist spinner Noor Ahmad claimed 2-20, and his senior colleague Rashid Khan bagged 1-15 as Punjab Kings landed in a spin web and never recovered.

After Azmatullah Omarzai, who came in for Spencer Johnson, bowled a two-run opening over, Prabhsimran hammered 21 runs off Sandeep Warrier's first over, hitting him for three fours and a six off a waist-high no-ball.

With Stand-in skipper Sam Curran also hitting a couple of boundaries, PBKS raced to fifty in the sixth over. However, Prabhsimran's promising knock was cut short as he jumped out to fullish ball outside off and edged back to the keeper. PBKS ended the Power-play at 56/1.

Rilee Rossouw (9), Sam Curran, Jitesh Sharma (13), Liam Livingstone (6), Shashank Singh (8) and Ashutosh Sharma (3) fell in quick succession as PBKS slumped to 99/7 in the 16th overs as Noor Ahmad, Rashid Khan and Sai Kishore spun a web around the batters, leaving them tottering.

Sai Kishore was struck for a six by Jitesh Sharma off his first ball, jumping out to club him over long-off. The 27-year-old left-arm spinner cut down on pace and dragged his length back. He got success a couple of balls later when he deceived Jitesh Sharma with a delivery that turned across and went under the bat to disturb the furniture.

Though a vociferous appeal for LBW against Ashutosh Sharma was rejected by the on-field umpire as well as on review as the ball was sliding down the leg side, Sai Kishore got his man in the same 14th over when Ashutosh Sharma holed out to deep extra cover for three runs. In his next over, Sai Kishore had his third wicket when he accounted for the dangerous Shashank Singh, catching him off his own bowling, sending down a flat length ball and beating an on-rushing batter with a slower pace. Shashank, the best batter for PBKS so far, was out for eight off 12 balls, and PBKS was tottering at 99/7 in the 16th over.

Harpreet Brar hit him for a couple of fours and a six into the sightscreen, Sai Kishore had the last laugh as Brar was caught by Shahrukh Khan inches inside the boundary rope off an overpitched delivery.

Later, Rahul Tewatia played a blazing cameo, hitting an unbeaten 36 off 18 balls as Gujarat Titans survived a few anxious moments to score a comfortable victory. Tewatia came in to bat with the Titans 97/4 chasing a modest target of 143 and flicked, reverse-swept and played some fine shots to race to 36 off 18 balls as he built on a patient knocks by Shubman Gill (35) and Sai Sudharsan (31) as they secured their fourth win of the season.

Chasing a modest target, the Titans got off to a poor start as Wriddhiman Saha fell for 13 (11 balls), with the team score reading 25 within the Power-play. Saha pulled Arshdeep Singh straight to Ashutosh Sharma as he was out after hitting a boundary during his brief stay. Titans skipper Gill and Sudharsan cautiously negotiated the Power-play and raised 41 runs for the second wicket partnership. Gill (35) swatted and flicked off his pads Kagiso Rabada for successive fours in the third over and also hammered a boundary each off Harshal Patel and Sam Curran during his vital knock.

The Gujarat skipper also crunched England spinner Liam Livingstone for a four in the eighth over before he was for 35 off 29 balls, jumping out to loft a delivery that was slower than expected and handed a comfortable catch to Rabada.

A couple of overs later, Livingstone struck another blow, castling David Miller with a tossed-up delivery that skidded past the big swing by Miller and crashed into the stumps. Gujarat Titans slumped from 66/1 to 77/3.

Sai Sudharsan (31 off 34), who by lashing Arshdeep through backward point for a four off the first ball he faced, kept going from the other end as he scored runs mostly in singles. He paddle swept Harpreet Brar for a four and flicked Sam Curran past fine leg when the skipper strayed off the line.

But Curran had his man when Sai Sudharsan chopped onto his stumps with Gujarat 97/4. Azmatullah Omarzai, who blasted the first six of Gujarat's innings as late as the 13th over in scoring, fell cheaply for 13, but Rahul Tewatia guided Gujarat Titans to victory with an unbeaten 36 off 18 balls despite Harshal Patel claiming two late wickets by dismissing Shahrukh Khan (8) and Rashid Khan (3).

Tewatia blasted seven fours during his 18-ball knock, hitting three boundaries, two of them back-to-back off Rabada in the 18th over -- the over cost PBKS 20 runs. Before that, he reverse-swept and hoicked Harpreet Brar to the boundary in the previous over as Gujarat recovered from a difficult situation and sauntered to a comfortable victory.