Revenge will fuel Gujarat Titans’ title defense when they clash with four-time winners the Chennai Super Kings today in the Indian Premier League (IPL) final in Ahmedabad.
Gujarat, who won the title in their debut season last year, topped the group stage this season, but went down to the M.S. Dhoni-led Super Kings in the first qualifier on Tuesday.
Hardik Pandya’s men bounced back from that defeat to thrash the league’s most successful team, the Mumbai Indians, in Friday’s second qualifier to set up a rematch with Chennai at Gujarat’s home ground in Ahmedabad.
Photo: AFP
Gujarat also have the personnel to become the first IPL franchise to win the league in their first two attempts.
Opener Shubman Gill, this season’s leading scorer, is in sublime form having smashed three hundreds in his past four innings.
“He is a superstar and is going to do big things to franchise cricket and Indian cricket,” Pandya said of his India teammate Gill.
Gill called his 129 his “best innings” in the IPL after he powered the Titans into the final with a 62-run thrashing of Mumbai.
Gill’s 60-ball knock fired Gujarat to 233-3, a total they defended by bowling out five-time winners Mumbai for 171 in 18.2 overs.
“I think this was probably my best innings so far in the IPL,” Gill said.
He hit 10 sixes and put on a second-wicket stand of 138 with Sai Sudharsan, who made 43.
The top three bowlers this season — Mohammed Shami, Rashid Khan and Mohit Sharma — are also from Gujarat.
Chennai have an opportunity to match Mumbai’s five IPL titles in what could be their talismanic leader Dhoni’s final season.
Dhoni has brought out the best in his teammates with his inspiring leadership.
While Ruturaj Gaikwad and Devon Conway have been their leading scorers, Shivam Dube has transformed into Chennai’s six-hitting machine.
In the bowling department, Matheesha Pathirana and Tushar Deshpande have emerged as death-overs specialists.
“You use them in a manner where they have most chances of performing and, at the same time, groom them in the areas where they’re not very strong,” Dhoni said of his leadership approach.
Additional reporting by AFP
Taiwan kept its hopes of advancing to the 2026 World Baseball Classic (WBC) alive with a 9-1 victory over South Africa in a qualifier at the Taipei Dome last night, backed by solid pitching. Bouncing back from Friday’s struggles on the mound, when Taiwanese pitchers surrendered 15 runs to Spain, Team Taiwan kept the visiting team in check, allowing just one run in the bottom of the fourth inning. The win was crucial for Taiwan, as a loss would have eliminated the team from contention for the next WBC. Starting pitcher Sha Tzu-chen (沙子宸) struck out one and allowed no hits, except for
The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) is considering reducing its pitch clock by two seconds to help players better adjust to the rules applied at the World Baseball Classic (WBC). The proposal aims to shorten the pitch timer from 25 seconds to 23 seconds with the bases empty, and from 20 seconds to 18 seconds with runners on base. Currently, the WBC mandates that pitchers deliver a pitch every 18 seconds with the bases empty and 15 seconds with runners on base. The issue was raised during a pre-season CPBL managers’ meeting on Tuesday by Rakuten Monkeys bench and batting
‘SETTING THE TONE’: Donovan Mitchell said that their determination to dominate had nothing to do with past results, but was about a potential post-season clash The Cleveland Cavaliers on Friday boosted their NBA-best record with a 142-105 romp past the New York Knicks, tightening their grip on the Eastern Conference lead with an all-around dominant display. Donovan Mitchell scored 27 points to lead six Cavs players to score in double figures, connecting on five of seven three-pointers as Cleveland drilled 19 from beyond the arc. “I think the biggest thing was just try to set the tone early,” Mitchell said, adding that the determination to dominate had nothing to do with the Knicks’ first-round playoff win over the Cavs two seasons ago and everything to do with
BELGIANS ADVANCE: Club Brugge gave Atalanta a lesson in efficiency, as Gian Piero Gasperini’s team had 29 efforts at goal, compared with seven from the visitors Seldom has a player’s sending off had such an influence on a game. AC Milan was to left rue Theo Hernandez’s second yellow card — for diving — as Feyenoord advanced to the UEFA Champions League last 16 at the former European champion’s expense with a 1-1 draw in the second leg of their playoff on Tuesday, giving the Dutch team a 2-1 win on aggregate. Bayern Munich, Club Brugge and Benfica also won their playoffs, eliminating Celtic, UEFA Europa League winner Atalanta BC and French team AS Monaco respectively. “In soccer everything changes in a second,” said Milan forward
RSS