ayaz memon

Shubman Gill continued his century-making spree, scoring a match-winning 129 against Mumbai in Friday night's Qualifier 2 in Ahmedabad to help Gujarat record a 62-run victory.

The defending champions will now play Chennai for the title on Sunday night.

Mumbai skipper Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to chase in the must-win game but Shubman Gill pretty much single-handedly took the game away from Mumbai with his century - his third this season. Gujarat posted 233/3 which proved too tall a task for Mumbai, even though Suryakumar Yadav fought a lone battle, as the five-time former champions were knocked out of the tournament.

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Gujarat have looked the most dominant team this season and entered the playoffs as the top ranked team following the league stage, but if there was any team that knows how to play the playoffs - it's Chennai. MS Dhoni's team had the added advantage of playing this first Qualifier at home at the Chepauk and they made the most of it, winning the match by 15 balls to spare.

First things first, Shubman Gill did not score another century, since he does seem to be on such a streak. He made 42. MS Dhoni also got to bat and scored 1 off 2 as Chennai posted 172/7 after being put into bat first by Hardik Pandya. That, however, proved more than enough as Gujarat lost by 15 runs.

Chennai now go through to Sunday’s final but Gujarat aren't out of the tournament, but have another shot at reaching the final when they play Friday's Qualifier 2 against the winner of Wednesday night's Eliminator between Lucknow and Mumbai. 

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In 2015, Mumbai did the Indian cricket team a great favour, by providing an unknown youngster from Baroda with a platform to shine. Eight years later, the player, Hardik Pandya, returned Mumbai the favour, as his team, Gujarat knocked Bangalore out with a six-wicket win in the last league-stage match of the season.

Put to bat first, Bangalore scored 197 runs, as Virat Kohli scored his seventh century in this competition, and subsequently, creating a new record. But from the opposition, Shubman Gill not only matched it, but he even bettered it, as his unbeaten 104-run knock took Gujarat over the line.

Barring Kohli, none of the Bangalore batters turned up, with the experienced batters now being subjected to a few difficult questions. Having scored only 140 runs this season, Dinesh Karthik was dismissed on a golden duck, whereas an in-form Glenn Maxwell scored merely 11 runs.

Rashid Khan and Noor Ahmad starred with the ball for Gujarat, combining effectively to pick up three wickets, and concede just 63 runs in their eight overs. The visitors lost Wriddhiman Saha early, but Shubman Gill and Vijay Shankar built a 123-run partnership, which eventually proved to be match-defining.

Following Shankar’s dismissal, Gill took the onus on himself to get his team over the line, which he did by scoring an unbeaten 52-ball 104. Not only did his knock secure a couple of points for his team, but it also booked Mumbai’s place in the playoffs, subsequently calling curtains to Bangalore’s campaign.

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Mumbai needed to win to keep their playoff hopes on track and Rohit Sharma's men did just that on Sunday, in their final league stage match, beating Hyderabad by 8 wickets.

The win now takes Mumbai to fourth in the standings with only Bangalore now having a chance to overtake them, with Faf du Plessis's men playing the last league match of the season, tonight against Gujarat in Bengaluru.

At the Wankhede on Sunday afternoon, Rohit Sharma won the toss and elected to bowl first. Hyderabad’s openers thanked him for that call by scoring 140 runs together. Mayank Agarwal is earning some redemption after a below-par season, that saw him dropped and on the sidelines for most of this month, top-scored for the team with 83 off 46. 23-year-old Vivrant Sharma, batting for the first time this season, also defied the Mumbai bowlers to make 69. Akash Madhwal was the pick of Rohit's bowlers, finishing with 4/37 in his four overs.

In reply, Ishan Kishan got out in the third over but skipper Rohit Sharma rose to the occasion to score a solid 56 to provide Mumbai's chase the perfect foundation. Cameron Green though starred with the bat, scoring the fastest century of the season to get the team past the finish line in the penultimate over.

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Lucknow became the third team to qualify for the 2023 Indian T20 League playoffs, courtesy of a hard-fought one-run triumph over Kolkata, at the Eden Gardens. Subsequently, the two-time champions’ campaign also comes to a conclusion.

Put to bat first, Lucknow scored 176 runs, with Nicholas Pooran’s half-century, and Ayush Badoni’s supporting act rescuing the team from a precarious position. In response, Kolkata were just a run short, with Rinku Singh’s 33-ball 67 not yielding two points.

Lucknow had a difficult start with the bat, as Kolkata’s uncapped pace pairing of Harshit Rana and Vaibhav Arora did a decent job. They combined to bowl seven overs, wherein they conceded just 51 runs and also picked up three wickets.

At one stage, Lucknow were reeling at 73/5, but Pooran and Badoni’s sixth-wicket stand changed the complexion of the game. The Caribbean wicketkeeper-batter was the star of the show, scoring 58 runs in 30 deliveries.

Kolkata had a flying start with the bat, until the introduction of the spin trio of Krunal Pandya, Krishnappa Gowtham and Ravi Bishnoi. They worked wonders for the team that donned green and maroon in this game, as a tribute to ATK Mohun Bagan, with Rinku ending up on the losing side, despite yet another herculean effort.

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Rajasthan have had a messy May in this Indian T20 League which meant they needed a win on Friday night to stay alive in the tournament and they managed that, beating Punjab by 4 wickets in Dharamsala.

It was both teams’ last league stage match which means Punjab are out of the tournament and Rajasthan now move up to the fifth position in the points table. Their qualification hopes will depend very heavily on the result of RCB and Mumbai's games over the weekend as victory for either team will mean automatic elimination for Sanju Samson's team.

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Bangalore needed to win both their remaining two league stage matches this week for the best chance to enter the playoffs and Virat and Faf Du Plessis ensured they completed half the assignment on Thursday in Hyderabad as they chased down Hyderabad’s 186/5 with ease to lock two points in style.

South African wicket-keeper batter Heinrich Klaasen was the star of the Hyderabad team, scoring his maiden century in the tournament as the team posted 186/5 after being put into bat first by Faf du Plessis.

In reply, Virat Kohli too smashes a century, his first in the tournament in four years while being supported very well by Faf who himself scored 71 as the team won the match with 4 balls to spare.

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Hyderabad are now the second team to be out of the running for the playoffs this season, after a 34-run loss to Gujarat on Monday night in Ahmedabad.

The victory though means Hardik Pandya’s team has become the first to qualify for the next stage of the tournament, with 18 points from 13 matches and just one more league game to go this season.

The first innings of the match was quite eventful with Shubman Gill scoring his maiden ton in the tournament and Bhuvneshwar Kumar picking a fifer as Gujarat posted 188/9. In reply, Heinrich Klaasen fought a lone battle, scoring 64 and while Bhuvneshwar Kumar added 27 to the team's tally, Hyderabad only managed 154/9, losing the match by 34 runs.

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Having been unpredictable throughout the season, Kolkata stayed true to tag, as after a humbling home defeat to Rajasthan, the two-time champions made a stunning comeback by beating Chennai, in Chennai.

The hosts were put to bat first and they scored 144 runs, with Shivam Dube being the top scorer, with an unbeaten 34-ball 48. In response, Kolkata chased the total down in 18.3 overs, as Nitish Rana and Rinku Singh struck half-centuries.

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Rajasthan’s batting order produced a collapse of gigantic proportions in match 60 of the Indian T20 League, in Jaipur’s Sawai Mansingh Stadium. They suffered a 112-run defeat against Bangalore, and subsequently, have been demoted from their slot in the top four.

The visitors batted first and scored 171 runs, with skipper Faf du Plessis, and Aussie all-rounder, Glenn Maxwell scoring half-centuries. In response, Rajasthan were all out for only 59, as none barring Shimron Hetmyer could offer any resilience. Wayne Parnell starred with the ball for Bangalore, picking up three wickets.

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Delhi epitomized idioms like ‘falling like nine pins’ and ‘crumbling like a house of cards' in match 59 of the Indian T20 League, as they were handed a 31-run defeat by Punjab. Shikhar Dhawan’s men were put to bat first and they scored 167 runs, with Prabhsimran Singh scoring his maiden ton in this competition. In response, Delhi were once cruising at 69/0, but then went through a gigantic collapse, ultimately managing to muster only 136/8.

Although Prabhsimran had scored just one fifty in his first 17 games, he was seen at his very best in this fixture. Having scored just 27 runs off his first 31 deliveries, the 22-year-old from Punjab shifted gears only after getting his eye in.

Punjab’s decision of sending Sam Curran ahead of Sikandar Raza and Shahrukh Khan, however, did not pay dividends, with the all-rounder scoring just 20 runs in 24 deliveries.

For Delhi, Ishant Sharma was once again the most influential bowler, picking up the wickets of Shikhar Dhawan and Liam Livingstone.

The hosts had an outstanding start with the bat, with skipper David Warner leading by example, courtesy of a 27-ball 54. Cruising at 69/0 at the one stage it seemed that the two points have been all but secured until Harpreer Brar’s four-fer and Rahul Chahar’s twin scalps jolted Delhi’s progress. They lost six wickets in 19 runs, and ultimately, could not score more than 136 runs.

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Lucknow Super Giants pulled off a much-needed win over Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday evening with the help of a stunning match-winning innings from Nicolas Pooran, who batted at a strike rate of over 300 and was ably assisted by Prerak Mankad who scored a vital half-century to help the team close out the 7 wicket win, with 4 balls to spare.

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Mumbai needed a win on Friday night and Suryakumar Yadav, once again, played a match-winning knock to help the team win two vital points, with the help of which they are now third in the points table. The 27 run loss though does not do much to Gujarat's spot in the standings as Hardik Pandya's team remains in the first position, with 16 points from 12 matches.

An unbeaten century from Surya's bat, his first in the Indian T20 League, helped Mumbai post a mammoth 218/5, that the bowlers managed to defend, despite a blistering 79 from Rashid Khan, as Mumbai won the game by 27 runs.

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A masterclass in making a comeback is what Rajasthan's win over Kolkata on Thursday night at the Eden Gardens was.

Sanju Samson's team completely outplayed the hosts on all fronts as they chased down Kolkata's 149/8 in just 13.1 overs.

There were also records galore in the match as Yuzvendra Chahal became the league’s highest wicket-taker during his haul of 4/25, overtaking Dwayne Bravo's earlier record while Yashasvi Jaiswal starred with the bat, smashing the tournament’s fastest fifty, off just 13 deliveries.

With the two points from the win Rajasthan move up to the third spot in the points table while Kolkata are seventh with 10 points and two more league stage matches to go this season.

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So much to celebrate for Mumbai on Tuesday night. A 6 wicket victory over Bangalore at home that has helped them jump five spots in the points table to third, with 12 points.

The victory in front of their home fans also came with 21 balls to spare which has boosted the team's net run rate that will come handy in two week's time when teams fight for playoff berths.

The star of the night though was Mumbai's SKY who smashed a solid 35-ball 83 in the chase to get the team to within 8 runs of the victory after Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell scored half centuries to help Bangalore post 199/6.

Mumbai were in trouble at 52/2 in 5 overs with Rohit Sharma and Ishan Kishan out, but Surya played a magical knock, and partnered with Nehal Wadhera help the team seal two vital points.

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Andre Russell is back! After a below par season so far in the Indian T20 League, the Kolkata veteran smashed sixes and fours at will on Monday night at the Eden Gardens to help the team chase down Punjab's 179/7 and collect two vital points that help in keeping their campaign alive.

Punjab skipper Shikhar Dhawan won the toss and elected to bat first, scoring a half century, his third this season, but one that came off 41 deliveries. The team completed their 15 overs at 124/5.  Harpreet Brar and Shahrukh Khan then switched gears, smashing a few big fours and sixes as Vaibhav Arora’s 19th over went for 15  and Harshit Rana’s 20th went for 21 runs to help Punjab post 179/7. Varun Chakravarthy picked 3/26 in his 4 overs. 

In reply, Jason Roy and Rahmanullah Gurbaz scored 38 for the first wicket before Nathan Ellis sent back the Afghan batter on 15. Skipper Nitish Rana and Venkatesh Iyer collaborated to score 51 for the third wicket with Rana contributing with a handy half century. By the time he got out in the 16th over, 56 needed from 29 deliveries. But Rinku Singh and Andre Russell were at the crease.

Nathan Ellis went for 15 runs in the 17th over and it was then 36 needed from 18 balls. Arshdeep went for 10 but Sam Curran then was hit for 3 straight sixes by Andre Russell and the equation was down to 6 needed from 6.

Arshdeep Singh bowled the final over and 2 were needed from the final 2 deliveries when Russell got run out. 2 then were needed off the last ball and Rinku Singh at the crease, and he hit a four to help Kolkata seal their fifth win of the season.

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Last-over drama in the match between Rajasthan and Hyderabad on Sunday night in Jaipur saw Hyderabad finish on top and collect two vital points that helps them move out of the bottom spot in the standings.

Rajasthan batted first and scored a solid 214/2 with Jos Buttler returning to form with 95 and Sanju Samson scoring an unbeaten 66.

In reply, Hyderabad's Abhishek Sharma top-scored with 55 but it was Glen Phillips, playing in place of Harry Brook, that turned the game, smashing Kuldip Yadav for 24 runs in the 19th over. Eventually, 17 were needed off the last over with Sandeep Sharma bowling to Abdul Samad and Marco Jansen. The equation in the end was 5 needed off the last ball when Samad was caught. However, it was a no ball and in the free throw that followed, Samad smashed a six and Hyderabad won the game by 4 wickets.

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Delhi’s campaign seems to be getting on track as they’ve beaten Bangalore by 7 wickets in Saturday’s night match in the Capital to win their fourth match in the last five outings.

The 2 points from the clinical performance against Bangalore takes Delhi's tally to 8 points this season as they finally move up from the last position in the standings table, and are now ninth with eight points.

Bangalore elected to bat first and opener Virat Kohli scored a half century while Faf du Plessis made 45. Mahipal Lomror played a key innings, scoring 54 off 29 as the team posted 181/4. Delhi's all-rounder Mitch Marsh picked 2 wickets for 21, including the scalps of Faf and Glenn.  

The chase was near-perfect. Phil Salt, opening with David Warner, added 60 for the first wicket before Warner fell on the first ball of the sixth over to Josh Hazlewood on 22. Salt though put up a solid performance, anchoring the chase to score 87 and by the time he got out, to Karn Sharma, just 11 more runs were needed with over 4 overs remaining.

Delhi eventually won with 20 balls to spare. 

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A one-sided game through and through and MS Dhoni's Chennai have collected two points with a 6 wicket win over Mumbai on Saturday evening at the Chepauk.

MS Dhoni won the toss on his home ground and elected to bowl first. Mumbai moved their top three around a bit with Cameron Green opening with Ishan Kishan, and Rohit Sharma batting at number three, but none of it worked with all three batters out by the end of the third over- Cameron on 6, Ishan on 7 and Rohit on a duck- his second straight duck of the season and fifth single digit score this season. Suryakumar Yadav and Nehal Wadhera then stabilised the innings adding 55 for the fourth wicket but Surya then fell on 26 to Ravindra Jadeja in the 11th over and the team was at 69/4. Nehal though went onto score his first fifty of the season, scoring 64 to help Mumbai post 139/8.

Chennai were quick to get off the blocks as easy sixes and fours flowed from the bats of Devon Conway and Ruturaj Gaikwad as they posted 46 in 4 overs. Piyush Chawla got Mumbai a wicket in the fifth, sending back Gaikwad on 30. Rahane scored 21, Ambati made 12 but the target was always comfortably within reach. They lost 4 wickets by the end as Dhoni finished it off. Chennai won with 14 balls to spare.

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Kolkata have beaten Hyderabad by 5 runs in Thursday's Indian 20 League fixture in another last-over fixture this season.

Kolkata won the toss and elected to bat first in Hyderabad and posted 171/9 with Rinku Singh top-scoring with 46 and skipper Nitish Rana making 42. Hyderabad's Marco Jansen set the tone early, striking twice in his first over and then Karthik Tyagi got the crucial wicket of Jason Roy as Hyderabad were 35/3 within 5 overs. The team recovered to get to 127/5 after 14.2 overs with Rinku and Nitish scoring 61 for the fourth wicket, but once they got out, the team couldn’t switch gears at the right time and ended up with 171/9.

Hyderabad’s chase was slow to get off the blocks with Mayank, Abhishek, Rahul Tripathi and Harry Brook out by the 7th over and the team was 61/4. Heinrich Klaasen and Aiden Markram stitched a 70-run fifth wicket stand to get the team to 48 needed from 36. The equation in the end was  9 needed from 6 but Varun Chakravarthy managed to bowl a tight over and conceded just 3 as Kolkata won by 5 runs.

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