Skipper Shubman Gill struck a composed unbeaten half-century, while pacer Mohammed Siraj produced a fiery spell to guide Gujarat Titans to a dominant seven-wicket victory over Sunrisers Hyderabad in their Indian Premier League encounter on Sunday.
Sent in to bat, Hyderabad posted a modest 152 for eight on a sluggish surface at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium. Siraj led the attack with impressive figures of 4 for 17, while left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore (2/24) and seamer Prasidh Krishna (2/25) provided admirable support.
In response, the Titans overhauled the target in just 16.4 overs, with Gill anchoring the innings with a fluent 61 not out off 43 balls. Washington Sundar, batting at number four, contributed a valuable 49 off 29 deliveries, stitching together a 90-run third-wicket partnership with the captain.
Mohammed Shami (2/28) and Pat Cummins (1/26) had briefly reignited SRH’s hopes by removing B Sai Sudharsan (5) and Jos Buttler (0) early, reducing GT to 16 for two in the fourth over. However, any momentum was quickly dissipated in a disastrous sixth over bowled by Simarjeet Singh, who leaked 20 runs.
Washington capitalised on Simarjeet’s erratic length, pulling and hooking for two sixes over fine leg after collecting two boundaries. Gill, elegant as ever, brought up his fifty in 36 deliveries.
Although Washington fell one short of a deserved half-century, Sherfane Rutherford’s brisk unbeaten 35 off just 16 balls ensured the match was wrapped up with 20 balls to spare.
Earlier, Siraj had removed both SRH openers — Travis Head (8) and Abhishek Sharma — before returning to claim two more wickets. Head had a stroke of luck when a thick edge off Siraj went for four, but the Australian’s fortune soon ran out, with Sai Sudharsan pulling off a fine catch at mid-wicket.
Siraj struck again to send back Abhishek, who failed to time a lofted shot and was caught at mid-on. SRH were restricted to 45 for two by the end of the powerplay and struggled to regain momentum thereafter.
Injuries too played a part, with Glenn Phillips limping off after treatment. Ishan Kishan (17) was dismissed by Krishna, and a brief resistance came from Nitish Kumar Reddy (31 off 34) and Heinrich Klaasen (27 off 19), who added 50 for the fourth wicket. Klaasen struck a few boundaries and a six off Rashid Khan during this stand.
But just as SRH seemed to be settling in, Sai Kishore cleaned up Klaasen with a delivery that disturbed his leg stump as he attempted a pull. Reddy too fell attempting an aggressive stroke, as SRH slipped to 105 for five early in the 16th over.
The victory marked GT’s third win in four matches, while SRH succumbed to their fourth loss in five outings.
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