Gill and Saha help Gujarat win IPL ‘battle of brothers’
Krunal Pandya (L) walks to congratulate Hardik Pandya on their win in the IPL match in Ahmedabad on Sunday. AP
In the first ever IPL match with two teams captained by brothers, Lucknow's Krunal won the toss and elected to field at the world's biggest cricket stadium in Ahmedabad.
The brothers joked and hugged at the start but things turned serious when a destructive opening stand of 142 between Wriddhiman Saha (81) and Shubman Gill (94 not out) powered Gujarat to their highest ever IPL total of 227-2.
Lucknow put up a spirited reply with Kyle Mayers (48) and Quinton de Kock (70) leading the charge but they ended on 171-7 to allow Gujarat to consolidate their top spot in the 10-team table.
Saha, a diminutive wicketkeeper-batsman, set up Gujarat's domination with sixes and fours to reach his fifty in just 20 balls before he fell to Avesh Khan.
Hardik, 29, and Gill extended the batting onslaught but the younger Pandya departed after Krunal, 32, took his catch. He made 25 off 15 balls.
The in-form Gill, who struck his fourth fifty of the season, put on another fiery stand with South Africa's David Miller, who smashed 21, as Gujarat finished on this year's fourth highest team total.
The left-handed Mayers began the chase strongly as he hit Hardik for a hat-trick of boundaries and then took on Mohammed Shami in a 19-run over.
India fast bowler Mohit Sharma sent back Mayers to break an 88-run opening stand and later took down dangerous Australian batsman Marcus Stoinis to dent the chase.
De Kock, a left-hand wicketkeeper-batsman, reached his fifty in his first IPL appearance this season but was bowled by Afghanistan spin wizard Rashid Khan as the Lucknow chase fell off track.
Krunal was out for a first-ball duck off Mohit, who returned figures of 4-29.
Agence France-Presse
