Gill's composed 86 helps team chase down 181; Green’s 79 goes in vain as victory eludes knights again
Shubman Gill's explosive 86 powered Gujarat Titans to a five-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders. Despite Cameron Green's valiant 79, KKR faltered, with Gujarat chasing down 181 with a ball to spare. Gill's third consecutive fifty anchored the successful pursuit.
AHMEDABAD: Often bracketed among batters whose strike rates don’t align with the demands of modern-day T20 batting, Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill (86 off 50b; 8x4, 4x6) showed his ball-striking abilities to notch up a third consecutive half-century and help the hosts seal a five-wicket triumph over winless Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the Narendra Modi Stadium here. The pursuit of 181 began in a commanding fashion for the Titans, who raced to 71/1 by the end of the Powerplay. Gill and B Sai Sudharsan (22) went after left-arm spinner Anukul Roy in his first over, smashing three sixes, to put the Titans chase on track.
Despite the loss of his fellow opener, Gill and Jos Buttler (25) took Gujarat to 93/1 after eight overs. KKR applied the squeeze, forcing Buttler to hole out to Varun Chakaravarthy (2/34), while Washington Sundar (13) failed to get going. Despite Gill’s dismissal to an outstanding diving catch by Cameron Green giving KKR a glimmer of hope to pull off an upset, Glenn Phillips (19) and the rest of the batters took the Titans home with a ball to spare.
\ Prior to this, Green reminded everyone of his white-ball pedigree with a composed yet forceful 79 off 55 balls, studded with seven fours and four sixes. Walking in with KKR in early trouble, the Australian allrounder first absorbed pressure and then took the attack back to Gujarat Titans, dragging his side to 180. The score was competitive but not quite what it could have been.
Only three other KKR batters reached double figures — Tim Seifert (19), Rovman Powell (27) and Ramandeep Singh (17) — underlining how solitary Green’s effort really was. KKR’s decision to bat first misfired almost immediately. Ajinkya Rahane fell first ball, caught by Kagiso Rabada off Mohammed Siraj.