IPL 2022, GT vs RR: Pandya power lights up Gujarat Titans against Rajasthan Royals

Skipper's all-round show helps Gujarat to 37-run win, top tableA scintillating show with the bat from captain Hardik Pandya, who was electrifying in the field as well, guided Gujarat Titans to a 37-run win over Rajasthan Royals at the DY Patil Stadium in Mumbai on Thursday. The team also went top of the IPL table, having successfully managed to rein in a rampaging Jos Buttler as Rajasthan chased 193. AS IT HAPPENED | SCORECARD | POINTS TABLEEliminating the Buttler threat was the key to win and Gujarat Titans knew it well. At the peak of his powers, the opener gave a scintillating start to Rajasthan Royals' chase as he raced to 54 off 24 balls within the Powerplay. But Lockie Ferguson set him up brilliantly- feeding him with pace above 145 kph before cunningly withdrawing it to 126.4 to bowl a slow yorker. Buttler was castled on the last ball of the sixth over and the match swung Titans' way. Ferguson finished with 4-0-23-3. All the gains made in the Powerplay where Royals scored 65, were squandered by the batters who followed after Buttler.

While Sanju Samson (11 off 11 balls) failed to leave any impact, his counterpart Pandya made his presence felt with an all-round performance. Pandya truly came alive with a responsible as well as ferocious knock of unbeaten 87 off 52 balls that took Titans to 192/4. The captain's knock was studded with eight fours and four sixes. Later he bowled clinically (1-18) and also affected a run-out that ended Samson's stay at the crease. Earlier, vacuum created in the absence of their bowling spearhead Trent Boult, who missed out because of a niggle, left a big hole in the Royals playing XI. How things pan out automatically depended on the success of the team's experienced spinners,