'He has been telling everybody that he is there' - Hardik Pandya lauds Shubman Gill for his 96-run knock

Indian and Gujarat Titans (GT) batter Shubman Gill missed a well-deserved century against Punjab Kings on April 8 (Friday), but his 96 runs off 59 balls ensured that the new entrants remained in the match during the steep chase of 190 runs. The match eventually went down the wire with 19 needed off the last over and allrounder Rahul Tewatia’s consecutive maximums took GT past the winning line in a thrilling finish.

GT skipper Hardik Pandya has hailed the opener Gill for his excellent knock and also lauded his batting unit’s efforts to snatch the game from the PBKS claws. The captain also hailed debutant Sai Sudharsan for forming a valuable partnership with Gill for the second wicket.

It was Kings’ game, I have sympathy for them: Pandya during post match presentation

“It was Kings’ game, I have sympathy for them. He (Gill) has been telling everybody that he is there. A lot of credit goes to Sai as well for that partnership. It kept us in the game. I am going to get better with every game. I am getting tired as I’m not used to bowling four overs. But I am getting better,” said skipper Pandya during the post match presentation.

It is to be noted that, Gill was signed by GT for INR 8 crore ahead of the IPL 2022 mega auction. After failing to open his account against Lucknow Super Giants, Gill made an impressive comeback to score two back-to-back fifties.

Chasing a target of 190, wicketkeeper-batter Matthew Wade failed yet again. However, Gill continued his good form with the bat. He, along with debutant Sai Sudharsan, took GT’s score past the 100-run mark. Sudharshan got out after making 35 off 30 balls. However, the required run rate was now above 10 runs per over, with Gill and skipper Pandya at the crease.

Amid disciplined bowling, PBKS managed to make a strong comeback in the match, with the Titans requiring 19 runs in the final over of the match. The match looked done and dusted with Pandya getting out off the first legitimate ball of the over.  However, Tewatia’s best finishing skills came to the fore as he hit two consecutive sixes off the last two balls and won the match for his side.