Punjab Kings (PBKS) secured an 11-run victory over Gujarat Titans (GT) in a high-scoring IPL season opener in Ahmedabad on Tuesday.
Sent in to bat by GT skipper Shubman Gill, PBKS posted a commanding 243/5, led by captain Shreyas Iyer’s explosive 97 off 42 balls. Opener Priyansh Arya provided an aggressive start, while Shashank Singh’s late fireworks bolstered the total.
Sai Sudharsan set up GT’s chase with a composed 74, but PBKS bowlers, led by Arshdeep Singh, tightened the screws in the final overs to defend the total.
BRIEF SCORES
PBKS: 209/8 (Shreyas Iyer 97*, Sai Kishore 3/30)
GT: 211/9 (Sai Sudharshan 74, Arshdeep Singh 2/36)
Almost there, almost!
In response openers Gill and Sudharsan made a brisk start as they needed just over 12 runs needed per over to keep the chase going. The Titans duo raced to 50 in five overs, with Gill leading the charge.
However, his aggressive knock was cut short at 33 off 14 balls when Glenn Maxwell struck in the final over of the powerplay.
Sudharsan kept the scoreboard ticking, forging an 84-run stand with England’s Jos Buttler. The left-hander compiled a classy 74 off 41 balls before Arshdeep Singh dismissed him in the 13th over.
At 145/2, GT remained in contention, with Buttler and impact substitute Sherfane Rutherford at the crease. The pair added 50 runs off 31 balls, but Punjab pulled back momentum in the death overs. Marco Jansen removed Buttler for 54 in the 18th, and Rahul Tewatia was run out for six off two balls as the chase faltered.
Rutherford fought on, but Arshdeep’s precise death bowling proved decisive. The West Indian fell for 46 off 28 balls in the final over, as GT finished at 232/5, falling just short, with Shahrukh Khan and Arshad Khan unbeaten at the end.
Shreyas, Shashank wreak havoc
Put into bat first by GT skipper Gill, the Kings raced to 73/1 at the end of the powerplay after some early damage from deubtant Araya, who opened alongside wicketkeeper Prabhsimran Singh.
The southpaw dominated early on, striking at over 200. He hammered seven fours and four sixes in a 23-ball 47 before falling to Afghanistan's Rashid Khan in the seventh over.
Prabhsimran managed just five before being dismissed in the third over, but Shreyas kept the momentum going as Punjab aimed for a formidable total. He was joined by Afghan all-rounder Azmatullah Omarzai, who fell for 16 to Titans spinner Sai Kishore in the 11th over. Kishore struck twice in the same over, removing the explosive Glenn Maxwell for a first-ball duck, leaving PBKS in trouble at 105/4.
Undeterred, the Punjab skipper took on Kishore and Rashid, bringing up his half-century off 27 balls as he continued to dismantle the Titans' attack. He was joined by Australian all-rounder Marcus Stoinis, who chipped in with a brisk 20 off 15 deliveries before Kishore claimed his third wicket in the 16th over.
Shreyas then stepped on the gas in the 17th over, taking Prasidh Krishna apart for 24 runs with three sixes and a boundary. Shashank Singh, a breakout star for PBKS last season, joined Iyer as the duo tore into the Titans' attack, smashing 18 runs off Rashid in the 18th over.
Entering the final over, Iyer stood unbeaten on 97 off 42 deliveries at the non-striker's end, eyeing a century on his Punjab Kings debut.
However, Shashank had other plans, taking apart Mohammed Siraj for 23 runs with five boundaries to propel PBKS to 243/5 as he finished unbeaten on 44 off just 16 balls.
Playing XI
Punjab Kings: Prabhsimran Singh (Wk), Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer (C), Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Glenn Maxwell, Suryansh Shedge, Azamatullah Omarzai, Marco Jansen, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal
Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (C), Jos Buttler (Wk), Sai Sudharsan, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, R Sai Kishore, Arshad Khan, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna