The eighth game of the Indian Premier League 2023 witnessed a clash between hosts Delhi Capitals and visitors Gujarat Titans at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi on Tuesday, April 4. The Titans continued their momentum to extend their match-winning streak and comprehensive efforts by all the players helped the defending champions keep their form going as they won the game by six wickets, handing Delhi their second consecutive defeat.
The game started with Gujarat skipper Hardik Pandya winning the toss and putting the hosts to bat first. Delhi Capitals could not get off to the desired start as top-order batters, Prithvi Shaw and Mitchell Marsh, were dismissed cheaply within the powerplay after scoring 7(5) and 4(4) respectively and the David Warner-led side struggled to get going.
But the skipper kept adding the crucial runs on the board and Sarfaraz Khan assisted him on the crease, as the duo stitched up a composed 30-run stand for the third wicket, with Warner contributing majorly to it. But Alzarri Joseph picked up two wickets back to back in the ninth over, which saw the captain and Rilee Rossouw walking back to the pavilion.
Rashid Khan and Mohammed Shami stood out for the Titans with the ball as they picked up three wickets each, while Joseph finished with those two wickets. Rashid was more impactful as he registered 3/31 in four overs as compared to Shami’s 3/41. Axar Patel and Abhishek Porel’s contributions with the bat towards the end helped Delhi put up 162/8 in their 20-overs quota.
Gujarat openers Wriddhiman Saha and Shubman Gill started off well, but could not stay on the crease for a long time as Anrich Nortje drew the first blood, and his fiery deliveries helped Delhi get the crucial breakthroughs. Gujarat lost three wickets in the powerplay and stood at 54/3 at the end of the sixth over as skipper Pandya failed to create an impact.
Sai Sudharshan and Vijay Shankar, who came in as the Impact Player, then played a key role in building up Gujarat’s innings as they added 53 runs for the fourth wicket partnership. The duo batter together for more than seven overs before Marsh sent Shankar back to the pavilion. David Miller (31* off 16) marked his return in style, and Sudharshan (62* off 48) too kept the runs coming while also completing his half-century.
The two were brilliant with the bat as they formed a 50-run partnership off just 28 deliveries, and went on to complete the chase successfully with 11 deliveries to spare, thereby handing their team the second win on the trot. The Titans will next face Kolkata Knight Riders at their home ground, the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, on Sunday, April 9.
Here’s how Twitter reacted to GT’s comprehensive win: