Gill, Buttler and Gujarat bowlers earn 4-wicket victory

Shubman Gill and Jos Buttler claimed the headlines for the Gujarat Titans as they comfortably beat the high-flying Royal Challengers Bengaluru by four-wickets in their Tata IPL match at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Thursday.

Captain Gill hammered 43 from just 18 balls with four fours and three sixes and Buttler smashed 39 from 19 (2x4, 4x6) to steer the hone side to 158-6 in response to RCB’s modest 155 all out and, despite some late wobbles, victory was sealed with 25 balls to spare.

The heavy-lifting was done by the Gujarat bowlers, however, with Rashid Khan (4-0-19-2) back to his parsimonious best after a recent dip in form – his dismissal of big-hitting Australian, Tim David (9), caught at midwicket off an inside edge was a key moment.

Left arm seamer, Arshad Khan, was no less influential with 3-22 from 3.2 overs while former West Indies captain, Jason Holder, returned 2-29 from his four overs as the high-riding RCB batsmen continued to counter-attack and lose wickets.

Top-scorer, Devdutt Padikkal, was bowled off an inside edge by Rashid while Holder dismissed Jitesh Sharma (1) and fellow West Indian, Romario Shepherd, for 17 from 15 balls.

Kagiso Rabada had the least flattering figures of the five-man attack - 4-0-44-1 – but, as so often, they did not reflect the real story. The great Virat Kohli smashed four fours and a six against Rabada in his first two Power Play overs before a Rabada bouncer removed him a simmering 28 from 13 balls. The result might have been very different had Kohli continued in such a vein of form.

Gill was brilliantly caught by Kohli off Bhuvneshwar Kumar (4-0-28-3) and Buttler was bowled by the same man which led to a clatter of three further wickets but Gujarat were so far ahead of the required run rate that Rahul Tewatia (27*) and Rashid (7*) could coast to victory.

The result sees RCB remain in second place on 12 points from nine matches, ahead of Sunrisers Hyderabad and Rajasthan Royals on net run-rate, with Punjab Kings one point ahead on 13 points. Gujarat, however, move into fifth place with 10 points from nine matches opening a four-point gap between sixth placed Chennai Super Kings.

GUJARAT TITANS: Shubman Gill(c), Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler(w), Jason Holder, Shahrukh Khan, Washington Sundar, Arshad Khan, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Manav Suthar

Impact subs: Rahul Tewatia, Glenn Phillips, Anuj Rawat, Nishant Sindhu, Kulwant Khejroliya

ROYAL CHALLENGERS BENGALURU: Virat Kohli, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Rajat Patidar(c), Jitesh Sharma(w), Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Suyash Sharma, Josh Hazlewood

Impact subs: Rasikh Salam Dar, Jordan Cox, Mangesh Yadav, Vicky Ostwal, Venkatesh Iyer