Earlier, despite the early loss of Shubman Gill—cleaned up by a beauty from Jofra Archer in the third over—Gujarat Titans opener Sai Sudharsan has looked in sublime touch against Rajasthan Royals, reaching his fifty off 32 balls.
He counterattacked with authority, showcasing his range with inventive shots, including a cheeky scoop for six over fine leg and a couple of crisp boundaries down the ground and through point.
Archer provided the early breakthrough with a peach that beat Gill’s defense, but Sudharsan kept the scoreboard ticking. Tushar Deshpande bore the brunt of the left-hander’s onslaught, leaking 18 in a single over as GT surged past 50.
Sandeep Sharma bowled a tidy final over in the PowerPlay, giving Royals a much-needed breather and keeping the batters from freeing their arms.
Sri Lankan Maheesh Theekshana then struck a vital blow, removing Jos Buttler for 36 off 25 balls just when he was looking set, leaving Rajasthan at 94/2 after 10 overs.
Earlier, Rajasthan led by Sanju Samson won the toss and opted to bowl.
Wanindu Hasaranga misses out due to personal reasons, and Fazalhaq Farooqi comes in as his replacement in Rajasthan Royals’ playing XI.
The Titans currently have six points, and a victory would keep them near the top of the points table. Meanwhile, the Royals, with four points, need a win to escape the mid-table scramble. The Gujarat Titans have won three consecutive matches, while the Rajasthan Royals have secured two back-to-back wins, putting them in their current positions on the points table. However, both teams’ recent success has been somewhat masked by disappointing bowling performances.
Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson(w/c), Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag, Shimron Hetmyer, Dhruv Jurel, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Fazalhaq Farooqi, Sandeep Sharma, Tushar Deshpande
Gujarat Titans (Playing XI): Sai Sudharsan, Shubman Gill(c), Jos Buttler(w), Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna, Ishant Sharma
Impact subs
Gujarat Titans: Washington Sundar, Nishant Sindhu, Anuj Rawat, Mahipal Lomror, Arshad Khan
Rajasthan Royals: Kunal Singh Rathore, Shubham Dubey, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Kumar Kartikeya, Akash Madhwa
