Navi Mumbai: Captain Hardik Pandya’s (50 n o, 42b, 4×4, 1×6) responsible knock 50 not out off 42 balls helped Gujarat Titans post a competitive 162 for seven wickets after a top-order failure in their IPL game against Sunrisers Hyderabad here Monday. Put into bat, Hardik Pandya first forged a 40-run stand for the fourth wicket with David Miller (12) to rally the innings after the Titans had been reduced to 64/3 after eight overs.
Hardik then added 50 runs with Abhinav Mahonar (35, 21b, 5×4, 1×6) who justified his Rs 2.60 crore price tag. The partnership ensured that the Titans crossed the 150-run mark.
Manohar, who got three lives, hit five boundaries and one six in his short stay and particularly launched into T Natarajan (2/34) in the 18th over, where Gujarat amassed 23 runs.
However, it was an unusual Hardik knock, as he mixed caution with aggression to anchor the innings. The ‘all-rounder’ announced his arrival with a straight-drive off Natarajan to fetch his first boundary and then was brutal on Umran Malik (1/39), whom he hammered two successive boundaries in the eight over.
In the next over, Pandya clobbered Aiden Markaram for his only maximum over cow-corner. However, he controlled his instincts as wickets fell regularly at the other side.
The SRH attack largely kept Hardik at bay, as they did not allow him to free his arms in the last five overs and as a result it was Hardik’s slowest half century in the IPL.
Brief scores
Gujarat Titans 162 for 7 (Hardik Pandya 50 n o, Abhinav Manohar 35, T Natarajan 2/34, Bhuvneshwar Kumar 2/37) versus Sunrisers Hyderabad. Match to continue.
