Punjab Kings vs Gujarat Titans, Match 37 Match Summary

Right then, that is it from Match 37 in which Gujarat got the better of Punjab and registered their fourth win of the season. They climb on the sixth position whereas things are getting more and more serious for Punjab as they faced their sixth defeat. Well, the action in the Indian T20 League 2024 continues as up next is the clash between the table-toppers Rajasthan and Mumbai, who are stacked in the middle of the table. That game will commence on April 22, Monday at 7.30 pm IST (2.00 pm GMT). But as you know, our build-up will begin much sooner. Till then, cheers!

Sai Kishore is the PLAYER OF THE MATCH for his outstanding four-wicket haul. Shares that he is trying to give his 120 per cent to the team and since he was playing for a gap of 20-25 days, he wanted to enjoy himself. Tells that Ashish Nehra has given them the freedom to express themselves. States that the plan was to vary the pace and bowl into the wicket. Credits Rahul Tewatia for his knock under pressure and Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad for the way they bowled.

Shubman Gill, the skipper of Gujarat says that they would have loved to finish it a bit earlier. Says that it is good to get those two points instead. He says he doesn't want to think about the captaincy and just wants to bat freely. Adds that except for the over rate, things have gone well for him as a captain. On being asked about the exchange of words with Liam Livingstone, Gill says that Livingstone was trying to rush him a bit, but he would have gone for a big shot irrespective.

Stay tuned for the presentation ceremony...

Rahul Tewatia is up for a quick chat. He says that he practices for these very situations in the nets. He says that the wicket was a bit tricky and says he examined the pitch and when he realized that there's not much spin on the track, he decided to get off the blocks. Adds that in the first innings, the wicket was slow and they used the spinners to perfection.

The captain of Punjab, Sam Curran says that the effort with the ball was incredible and the fight was amazing to see. Feels that they were 15-20 runs short but it was still a decent score. Credits the Afghan spin duo and Sai Kishore for the way they bowled. Mentions that Prabhsimran Singh batted well in the Powerplay but losing wickets in clusters afterwards was not ideal. Tells that they know what they need to do now and can't afford to lose many more games.

Earlier in the game, Punjab opted to bat first on what appeared to be a flat batting-friendly track. Punjab did get off to a steady start but once the opening pair was dismissed, they lost wickets, falling like a house of cards. Punjab just couldn't recover from the trouble as their two men in form, Shashank Singh and Ashutosh Sharma too, couldn't do any damage as Gujarat capitalized on the slow nature of the pitch by rotating the spin trio to great effect, which resulted in them picking up 7 wickets in total and restricting Punjab to a low score. When it was Gujarat's turn to chase down the target, they got off to a steady start provided by Gill and Sudharsan. Gujarat's innings fluctuated a bit as they lost wickets in the mid-overs but Rahul Tewatia took them to the much-needed win and got their campaign on track.

Punjab, having posted a below-par total, were in desperate need of early breakthroughs. Arshdeep Singh provided just that by swiftly dismissing Wriddhiman Saha early in the Powerplay, offering a glimmer of hope for his team. Once the fielding restrictions were lifted, Punjab introduced spin from both ends, and Liam Livingstone capitalized with a double breakthrough, bringing Punjab right back into the contest while also stemming the flow of runs to some extent. These two quick wickets triggered a marginal collapse as successive batters fell in quick intervals, with Sam Curran and Harshal Patel also chipping in with a wicket each upon their return to the attack. Harshal Patel got three wickets to his name but it was just too late to be fair. And despite their efforts, Punjab ultimately fell short as they didn't have enough runs on the board to defend, ultimately resulting in their sixth defeat of the season.

After a few hurdles and hiccups in the mid-overs, Gujarat finally emerge as the victors of the game and get back to the winning ways, thanks to a sensational cameo by Rahul Tewatia. In their pursuit of a manageable target of 143, Gujarat's opening pair, featuring Shubman Gill and Wriddhiman Saha, commenced their innings with a composed strategy, consistently rotating the strike. However, Saha's departure due to a soft dismissal showcased another underwhelming performance from him. Despite this setback, Gill showcased his effortless strokeplay, gathering crucial boundaries. Sai Sudharsan, batting at number 3, contributed a steady innings, providing valuable support. Both batters steadily progressed the innings, taking advantage of any poor deliveries and maintaining the required run rate well within reach. However, the introduction of spinners slowed down the scoring rate, leading to the quick dismissals of Gill, who departed after scoring 35, and Miller, who managed just 4 runs. The middle overs saw some dramatic moments as Gujarat lost half of its side with the score at 103. In such a crucial juncture, Rahul Tewatia lived up to his reputation and played a pivotal role in guiding Gujarat to victory. His crucial cameo of 36 off just 18 ensured that Gujarat did not succumb to pressure and sealed the win during the latter stages of the innings.

FOUR! THAT'S IT! Rahul Tewatia with the winning runs! Arshdeep Singh steams in from over the wicket and errs in line as he drifts onto the pads, full in length, Rahul Tewatia lets the ball come to him and glances it away off his pads down to the fine leg fence for a boundary. Gujarat win by 3 wickets with five balls to spare.

Sai Kishore is in at number 9. Arshdeep Singh to bowl the final over of the chase. 1 needed off the last 6 balls.

OUT! TAKEN! WHAT AN ANTI CLIMAX! Another yorker gone wrong by Harshal which ends up as a low full toss, on middle, there to be put away, Rashid Khan opts to play his favourite whip across the line. Fails to get it past mid-wicket and ends up hitting it low towards Rilee Rossouw who dives to his left and does the rest. Another game at Mullanpur that is going down to the final over.

Scores level! Low full toss, straying on the pads, Rashid Khan flicks it off his pads to the right of deep backward square leg for a couple of runs. Can Gujarat finish it on the last ball?

On a length, slanting in, on off, Rahul Tewatia checks his drive and plays it down to long off for a single. 3 runs more needed.

Swing and a miss! Comes from around the wicket and bowls it fuller in length, outside off, it is there in the slot for Tewatia who swings, only to connect with thin air.

Goes for the yorker again, on middle but it comes out as a low full toss, Rashid Khan does well not to get beaten by the ball dipping on him and clips it in front of square on the leg side for a single.

Rashid Khan walks out to the middle at number 8.

OUT! TIMBER! Shahrukh Khan cannot quite see his side home. Nothing more than a consolation is this wicket for Harshal Patel and Punjab. Bowls it at full hilt, right at the base of the stumps, Shahrukh Khan is late to bring his bat down as the ball dips on him and creeps under the bat. The ball brushes the back boot and crashes into the stumps.

Harshal Patel (2-0-11-1) to bowl the penultimate over.

FOUR! Not very convincing but that will do for Gujarat. Hurls it on a hard length, tailing in, on middle, Rahul Tewatia gets into a tangle as he gets hurried while looking to dab it down the deck. Gets it off his gloves and it races to the left of the keeper, Jitesh Sharma for yet another boundary. 20 runs off the over, the most expensive over for Rabada in this season of the Indian T20 League. Gujarat are 5 runs away from a win.

FOUR! Clever, very clever! Keeps it on a length, on the off-stump line, Rahul Tewatia puts the dancing shoes on and hits through the line. Lifts it back over the bowler's head for four more runs.

Nails the yorker, at the stumps, Shahrukh Khan digs it out on the leg side for a single.

SIX! BANG! Hit with real authority! Angling in, at the stumps, on a length with an upright seam, Shahrukh Khan gives himself room and he is aware that mid off is inside the circle. Lofts it easily and clears the fence for a maximum.

Ouch, Tewatia has copped a blow on his gloves. Rabada hits the deck hard and bowls it at the batter, Rahul Tewatia looks to keep it out but the ball jags back in to rap him on the knuckles. The ball rolls to the leg side and they cross.

FOUR! Oh my! Lovely shot! Rabada steams in from around the wicket and bowls it on a good length, on off, Rahul Tewatia gets his weight on the front foot and lets his hands flow into the shot. Drives it along the ground and hits it to the right of mid off for a boundary. Pressure on Rabada right away.

Kagiso Rabada (3-0-20-0) is back to bowl the last over of his quota. Can he bring Punjab back into the contest? Let's see.

Short and going across the batter, cut away to deep backward point and Tewatia will keep the strike. Just the over Gujarat needed, 13 runs off it which leaves them needing 25 runs off the last three overs.

FOUR! Tewatia picks his spot to perfection. The southpaw bringing all his experience into play here. Brar strays on the pads and bowls it fractionally short, Rahul Tewatia gets on one knee and gets inside the line to pull it towards the vacant deep backward square leg region for a boundary.

Intelligent batting by Tewatia. Short and at the stumps, Rahul Tewatia waits for the ball to arrive and drops it with soft hands in the vacant square leg region which allows him to come back for the second run. A couple followed by a boundary and then a couple of runs more.

FOUR! Rahul Tewatia gets the shot away this time. Full and sliding across the left-hander, outside off, Rahul Tewatia pulls out the switch hit again and gets the front leg out of the way nicely. He connects well and hits it to the left of short third for a boundary.