Gujarat Titans moved to the top of the points table of Indian Premier League 2025, after a thumping win against Rajasthan Royals in Ahmedabad. GT posted a huge total of 217/6 in 20 overs, thanks to Sai Sudharsan’s 53-ball 82. Rajasthan Royals lost wickets at regular intervals, and bowled out for 159. Gujarat Titans moved to the top of the table with their 4th win, having played two additional games than 2nd placed Delhi Capitals. Rajasthan Royals remain at the 7th place, with 2 wins from 5 matches.
Should teams opt to bat first?
IPL 2025 has witnessed 19 night matches and the captain who won the toss decided to bowl first on 18 of those occasions, including RR captain Sanju Samson against Gujarat Titans. 9 of those resulted in defeats, including last night. One may wonder whether the captains are not able to read the pitches and make an informed decision.
Sai ‘consistent’ Sudharsan
Sai Sudharsan showed everyone that his low score (5 from 9) against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Sunday was an aberration. Jofra Archer was breathing fire at the one, pushing the speed gun in excess of 150 kmph. Archer even accounted for the wicket of GT captain, Shubman Gill, with an absolute beauty of a ball, clocked at 147.7 kmph. In walked Jos Buttler, Sai Sudharsan’s favourite batting partner at the moment. Sudharsan and Buttler have the penchant to bat with each other, adding their 4th fifty partnership in 5 games this season. Buttler added 36 against his former side. Sudharsan converted his start into a well-made 82 off 53 balls. Sudharsan scored 56% of his runs behind the wicket. He even levelled AB de Villiers, for scoring five consecutive fifty+ scores at a single venue in IPL.
The middle-order deliver
The one question mark surrounding the Gujarat Titans batting is the ability of their middle-order to deliver under pressure. Rajasthan Royals put them under pressure at times, and the likes of Shahrukh Khan (36 from 20), Rashid Khan (12 from 4) and Rahul Tewatia (24* from 12) did a commendable job and pushed the total closer to 220. Barring Jofra Archer (1/30), the rest of the RR bowlers couldn’t apply pressure at a sustainable level.
Prasidh Krishna turns up the heat
Arshad Khan and Mohammed Siraj provided the early breakthroughs in the powerplay for GT. Prasidh krishna, another former player of Rajasthan Royals, broke the back of the chase, by picking the key wickets of Sanju Samson (41 from 28) and Shimron Hetmyer (52 from 32). Prasidh bowled an incredible 12 dot balls and finished with figures of 3/24 from his four overs.
All-round Gujarat Titans
Shubman Gill and coach Ashish Nehra ticked off few check boxes along the way. Uncapped bowlers Arshad Khan and Kulwant Khejroliya took a wicket each. Riyan Parag, who got out to Khejroliya wasn’t pleased with the decision. The batter thought that his bat had hit the ground, the same moment when the ‘Ultra edge’ showed a spike. Rashid Khan’s (2/37) return to form would have been the most pleasing thing for the GT management.
What’s next?
Gujarat Titans travel to Lucknow to play LSG on Saturday (April 12), whereas Rajasthan Royals host Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Sunday (April 13), with both being day games.
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