Mumbai: Punjab Kings (PBKS) registered a 8-wicket victory against Gujarat Titans (GT) in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022. Kagiso Rabada’s impressive four-wicket haul, Shikhar Dhawan’s brisk half-century and Liam Livingstone’s explosive finish helped Punjab Kings to win.
Rishi Dhawan provided a good start to Gujarat Titans but Shubman Gill fell short of the crease. Wriddhiman Saha hit three boundaries followed by a maximum. However, Mayank Agarwal caught Wriddhiman Saha off Rabada’s bowling.
Skipper Hardik Pandya and Sai Sudharsan came out in the middle as Gujarat Titans were 42-2 at the end of the powerplay. Rishi Dhawan claimed Hardik Pandya’s wicket in the 7th over, putting Gujarat Titans at 62-3 at the halfway mark. David Miller came to the resue but Livingstone dismissed him.
Sudharsan stricked three fours and was joined by Rahul Tewatia. Rabada claimed two wickets to dismiss Tewatia and Rashid Khan. Sudharsan reached his maiden IPL fifty and remained unbeaten on 64*. Gujarat Titans reached 143/8 after the final over produced 11 runs.
Punjab Kings lost Jonny Bairstow on an early Mohammad Shami’s bowling. The opener was caught by Pradeep Sangwan. Shikhar Dhawan at the other end smacked three fours and a ramp shot for a maximum. Dhawan added two more fours to put PBKS at 43-1 at the end of the powerplay.
Bhanuka Rajapaksa supported with two consecutive fours as the fifty partnership was up. Punjab Kings were 76-1 at the halfway mark. Dhawan notched up his half-century and Rajapaksa at the other end hammered a six. Dhawan was joined by Liam Livingstone as Rajapaksa got trapped to a LBW. Livingstone smoked three sixes in a row followed by two fours against as PBKS surpassed the target with four overs to spare.
Brief Scores: Punjab Kings 145/2 (Shikhar Dhawan 62*, Bhanuka Rajapaksa 40; Lockie Ferguson 1-29) beat Gujarat Titans 143/8 (Sai Sudharsan 64*, Wriddhiman Saha 21; Kagiso Rabada 4-33) by 8 wickets.
 beat Gujarat Titans 143/8 (Sai Sudharsan 64*, Wriddhiman Saha 21) by 8 wickets.){kind=link}