IPL 2025: Funniest Memes from KKR vs GT Mid-Innings of Match 39

Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan put up 114 runs for the opening stand in the first innings.

Published - 21 Apr 2025, 20:27 IST | Updated - 21 Apr 2025, 21:19 IST

6 Min Read

The Match 39 of the Indian Premier League 2025 commenced with the Gujarat Titans being asked to bat first against the Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens, Kolkata on Monday, April 21. Skipper Ajinkya Rahane had the coin flip going in his favour, but the way Gujarat Titans batted in their attempt proved things otherwise.

The innings began with the in-form opening duo of skipper Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan walking out to bat, and despite a sedated start in the powerplay, they picked up pace and never looked like being uncomfortable to middle the ball, hit them in the gaps, find boundaries, and steal quick singles and twos. A well-compiled opening act by Gill and Sudharsan lasted 12.1 overs, as the latter departed to Andre Russell's bouncer, but not before aggregating 52 off 36 balls.

A wicket should have meant breaking of the shackles by the hosts, but in came Jos Buttler at No. 3 and started firing right from the get-go. The Englishman was so much into the zone as he started slogging with a variety of ramps and lofty hits pretty early into his innings. Buttler was very fortunate as well, getting a couple of chances dropped, which added salt to KKR's wounds.

The Gujarat captain too continued his merry way of scoring runs with his orthodox stroke play, with a few elegant strokes laced throughout his knock. Not getting carried away by the ease of scoring runs on a flat Eden deck, Gill notched up a brilliant 90, but felt short of what could have been his fifth century in the cash-rich tournament. Nonetheless, it was a brilliant a finish to the innings by the visitors, and while KKR had little to cheer about their bowlers, Varun Chakravarthy stood out with just 33 runs in his full quota of four overs.

The star opener Sudharsan opened up after the innings, and revealed how he alongside his skipper went about their briilliant partnership for the opening wicket. For the unversed, Sudharsan also got hold of the Orange Cap for his knock tonight.

"At the start of the game the wicket was really slow and we found it really difficult in the powerplay. We tried to make use of the bad balls and we had great communication out there. I enjoy Gill's company, his experience also really helps me. It matters when the conditions are difficult and we try to make use of the running between the wickets. We understood the wicket was difficult so we tried to bat deep because wickets in hand is the most important thing. To be honest, we have given the bowlers a very good total to defend," he said on air.