Led by Sai Sudharsan's fine knock, Gujarat Titans outclassed Rajasthan Royals by a thumping 58 run margin in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, April 9, 2025.
Opting to bowl first backfired spectacularly for Royals as GT made the most of a batting paradise, posting a mammoth 217/6.
The Titans' bowlers then returned with fire and discipline to bundle out Royals for 159, sealing a one-sided contest in front of a roaring home crowd at the Narendra Modi stadium.
Interestingly, for the fourth match in a row, a team successfully defended a 200-plus total.
It was yet another memorable evening for Sai Sudharsan at his home ground as he etched several records to his name.
The 23 year old dazzled spectators with a masterful 82 off 53 balls -- his sixth fifty at the Modi stadium along with one century.
He becomes the first Indian batter to hit five 50-plus scores in a row at a particular venue.
With 1,307 runs in his first 30 innings in the IPL, he boasts of the second best tally ever in the T20 league after Shaun Marsh, who had 1,338 runs in the same number of innings.
No other Indian batter, including greats like Virat Kohli or Rohit Sharma, have even gone past the 1,000-run mark in the first 30 IPL innings. Ruturaj Gaikwad is second best among Indian batters with 977 runs from his first 30 innings.
His knock against the Royals was a complete performance. After surviving a fiery new ball spell from Jofra Archer, Sudharsan shifted gears with authority.
He played a gorgeous ramp shot off Fazalhaq Farooqi for six, then took apart Tushar Deshpande in the next over with two fours and a six.
He blossomed in the company of the experienced Jos Buttler, racing to his fifty from 31 balls -- his third of the season.
He put on 80 runs for the second wicket with Buttler from 47 balls before adding another quick stand of 62 from 34 balls with fellow Tamil Nadu batter Shahrukh Khan to put GT on course for a huge total.
Sudharsan was unlucky to miss out a deserved century when he perished in the 19th over, caught behind off an inside edge off Tushar Deshpande.
For the Royals, Shimron Hetmyer was the lone man standing amid the ruins.
The West Indian southpaw brought the crowd to life with a bold counter-attack, hammering 52 off 32 balls -- his first IPL fifty in over two years.
Hetmyer, who was retained by Royals, has often faced criticism for his lack of consistency despite batting mostly in the death overs.
Hetmyer, who hit an entertaining 52 from 32 balls, registered his first IPL half-century in two years. Interestingly, his previous fifty (56 not out from 26 balls) came at this same venue when he played a role in Royals' three-wicket victory -- the only win for Royals against Titans in the IPL.
But there was no repeat of that magic.
Together with Sanju Samson, he gave RR glimmer of a hope as the duo came up with regular sixes and fours.
Hetmyer, who had fallen to Rashid Khan six times in T20 cricket before this match, set the record straight this time around. He hammered the GT spinner for a couple of sixes and as many fours as he raced to his fifty from 29 games.
But Samson's dismissal in the 12th over stalled the charge, and when Hetmyer fell to Prasidh Krishna in the 16th, the contest was effectively over.
Photographs: BCCI
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