Suryakumar takes down the Titans with first IPL ton

May 16, 2023 at 12:15 AM
Suryakumar takes down the Titans with first IPL ton

Mumbai Indians 218 for five (Suryakumar 103*, Rashid 4-30) beat Gujarat Titans 191 for 8 (Rashid 79*, Madhwal 3-31) by 27 runs

For a short while, it seemed like Suryakumar Yadav would truly end a T20 with out enjoying that one shot that made individuals’s jaws drop. And then he hit essentially the most unimaginable six. It propelled him to his first IPL century and Mumbai Indians to a comfortable victory over the defending champions Gujarat Titans.

You understand how Kane Williamson dabs to 3rd man to get singles? Well, Suryakumar accessed the identical space, besides he cleared the boundary. He noticed a ball on off stump. He knew he might get beneath it. At the purpose the place he made contact, he opened the face, simply as Williamson does, after which the energy in his forearms and his wrists did the remainder.

This is Suryakumar. He sees T20 cricket the way in which no person else sees it.

Rashid finally ends up a footnote

Titans got here into this recreation understanding a win wouldn’t solely safe a spot within the playoffs however give them two photographs at making the ultimate.

And they turned to their predominant man to make it occur. Rashid Khan produced 4 wickets for 30 runs in a format that continues to be hostile to his form. Even at the moment, Suryakumar spent 49 balls proving that bowlers and their plans exist simply so batters might are available in and rip all of them to shreds.

But Rashid would not purchase that. He had Rohit Sharma caught at slip with a beautiful legbreak. He upended Ishan Kishan by a easy change in size, the premeditated sweep shot failing in opposition to a ball that was too full for it. Titans saved the final six balls they’d from Rashid for the match up in opposition to Tim David. Those are excessive stakes. It was the seventeenth over. This is the time David involves life. Except he could not as a result of Rashid took him out for five off 3.

Very few are able to producing wickets on demand like this. Even fewer are ready to take action when the opposition comes onerous at them.

Suryakumar turns it on

When Mumbai misplaced their third wicket within the ninth over, they spent a short while scoring only a run a ball. 15 off 15. And then impulsively, they crashed 32 in 10.

It was throughout this time that Vishnu Vinod, the Kerala wicketkeeper making his Mumbai debut, carved Mohammed Shami for a scarcely plausible six. A ball ending up on prime of off stump scythed over level due to his quick arms and depraved wrists.

That would have been shot of the sport if not for SKY doing SKY issues.

He wanted 32 balls to get to his fifty. That’s sluggish by his requirements, and he was constructing his innings with orthodox photographs. The solely luxurious he afforded himself had been these straight sixes, the place his weight is normally on the again foot, proper as much as the purpose the place he meets the ball, after which he hops, lifting each himself and the ball up off the bottom. That’s how he creates leverage. It’s his personal distinctive factor.

Then Rashid took David out and one thing snapped. Suryakumar was 53 off 34 firstly of the 18th over. He hit Mohit Sharma for 3 fours and a six to maneuver to 73 off 40. Then he met Shami within the nineteenth over and performed a front-foot drive for six over third man, simply by opening the face of the bat. Finally, on 97, with just one ball left within the innings, he did what he has performed to quick bowlers everywhere in the world, sweeping Alzarri Joseph from means outdoors off into the group previous the sq. leg boundary.

Rashid or bust for Titans

As good as Titans are in a chase, they had been up in opposition to it in a short time when all of their prime three batters fell for single digits. Shubman Gill, Hardik Pandya and Wriddhiman Saha totalled 12 runs between them.

Vijay Shankar stored hopes of the inconceivable alive with a candy little cameo. But he fell to Piyush Chawla‘s first ball of the match, this IPL legend having the best season of his career at 34 years of age.

Way on the opposite finish of the spectrum is Akash Madhwal. He got here into the event as a result of Mumbai had been having a lot hassle with their bowling assault. This was solely his fourth recreation of the IPL and the twenty sixth of his T20 profession. And already he has proven an urge for food for the powerful job. Bowling on the demise, bowling to huge hitters, bowling with video games on the road.

Madhwal has a stunning yorker. And now, it seems his different balls are simply as lethal, as a result of when he hits a tough size, they maintain skidding by way of. He bowled Gill with one which stayed decrease than the batter anticipated. And he had David Miller lbw in simply the identical means.

Rashid carried the Titans with the bat as effectively, making his highest rating in T20s, 79 off 32 with 10 sixes. A complete of 103 for 8 in 14 overs rose to 191 for 8 in 20. But it was not sufficient. Imagine going three-fourth of the way in which to a century after choosing up one in need of 5 wickets and nonetheless shedding the sport.

Alagappan Muthu is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo