IPL 2022: 'Hardik Pandya had a really good day' - Sanju Samson praises Gujarat Titans' skipper

Gujarat Titans (GT) by 37 runs in the Indian Premier League (IPL) here on Thursday, Rajasthan Royals' (RR) skipper Sanju Samson praised Gujarat captain Hardik Pandya for his brilliant unbeaten knock of 87 runs. Skipper Hardik's unbeaten half-century was backed by a spirited performance of bowlers as Gujarat defeated Rajasthan by 37 runs here at the DY Patil Sports Academy. Debutants GT's fourth victory in five matches has taken them to the top of the Indian Premier League table while for Rajasthan this is their second loss in the league as they fall to the third spot.

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Eliminating 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

"I would like to give credit to their batters," said RR skipper Sanju Samson at post-match presentation. "Hardik played a very good innings. He had a really good day today; batted, bowled and fielded well. They played really well to get that score (192/4). If we had wickets in hand, this was chasable I feel. We were almost there in terms of run-rate; in the powerplay, we had a (comparatively) better run-rate actually, but we kept losing wickets. Samson said the team "definitely" missed Trent Boult. "(Boult had a) Freaky niggle last night in training, (we) definitely missed him. Hopefully he will be back soon.," said the RR skipper

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"It was just cramps, nothing else." That is how Gujarat