Hardik shines yet again as Titans beat Royals to top table

Skipper Hardik Pandya impressed with another responsible knock to take Gujarat Titans to 192 for four against Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League on Thursday. Hardik (87 not out off 52) first found an able ally in Abhinav Manohar (43 off 28) before he exploded in the company of David Miller (31 not out off 14) to power the IPL debutants to their highest score of the tournament.

Hardik and Manohar shared an 86-run stand for the fourth wicket before the skipper and Miller blasted 53 off 25 balls to end the innings in style.

After being put into bat, Gujarat found themselves reeling at 53/3. While Hardik’s 52-ball knock was studded with eight fours and four sixes, Manohar struck four fours and two maximums. Miller, who overall hit five boundaries and a six, fetched 21 runs in the penultimate over off Kuldeep Sen (1/51).

To start with, Hardik was aggressive on pacer Kuldeep as he hammered him for three successive boundaries in the fifth over. He then fetched his first maximum in the seventh over, when he clobbered Riyan Parag over his head. The duo upped the ante when Manohar launched into inform Yuzvendra Chahal, hammering him for a four and maximum, a lofted inside-out drive over cover. 

The two then took on Kuldeep, hammering him for three boundaries in the 14th over, where Hardik also notched up his fifty, with a cut towards backward point fence. And in the next over, Pandya clobbered two successive maximums off seasoned spinner Ravichandran Ashwin, who leaked 16 runs in the over. 

With Titans reaching 130/3 in 15 overs, the stage was set for a big total. After Manohar departed, Miller ably supported the skipper. Earlier, Gujarat Titans lost opener Matthew Wade (12) cheaply, courtesy a direct hit by Rassie Van Der Dussen from cover. 

Gujarat slipped to 15/2, as Vijay Shankar (2) also perished cheaply and then a rusty looking Shubman Gill (13) became Parag’s first victim, after he was caught by Shimron Hetymer at the long-on fence.

In reply, Buttler got Royals to a flier, hitting Mohammed Shami for three fours in the first over. Left-arm seamer Dayal, who was making his IPL debut, was next in the line. Buttler hit him for two fours and a six over fine leg. But Dayal responded by having Devdutt Padikkal caught at slip for a first-ball duck.

After a quiet third over, Buttler once again got stuck into Dayal, this time hitting him for three fours and a six. At the end of four overs, Buttler had scored 48 out of 49 runs Royals had on the board.

Ashwin, promoted to No 3, hit Rashid for a straight six. However, Ferguson sent him back – courtesy of a low catch from Miller at cover – for a run-a-ball 8. Four balls later, Buttler shuffled across and helped Ferguson over fine leg for a six, bringing up his 50 off just 23 balls. But Ferguson struck again, this time with a slower yorker to castle Buttler. That left Royals 65 for 3 after the powerplay.

Another excellent piece of fielding saw Sanju Samson’s back. The batter punched one towards mid-off for a quick single but couldn’t beat Pandya’s direct hit. After three boundary-less overs, van der Dussen edged Dayal behind, leaving Royals 90 for 5 in the 11th over.

Shimron Hetmyer tried to keep the chase alive, hitting Shami for a six and a four before holing out to long-on in the same over. In the last seven overs, Royals needed 76 with Parag and Neesham at the crease. But Ferguson returned in the 16th over to dismiss Parag. Two overs later, Pandya had Neesham caught and bowled with a slower one to all but seal the game.

Brief scores: GT 192/4 in 20 ovs (Pandya 82 n.o, Manohar 43; Parag 1/12) beat RR 155/9 in 20 ovs (Buttler 54; Ferguson 3/23).