GT beat LSG in their IPL debut match by 5 wickets.
GT won the battle of the debutants against LSG as they chased down the 159-run target with 5 wickets in hand and 2 balls to go. Hardik Pandya, Matthew Wade and David Miller made scores in thirties, while Rahul Tewatia slammed 40* in 24 balls in the tense chase.
Earlier, despite being reduced to 29/4 with Mohammad Shami taking 3/25, LSG managed to post 158/6 in 20 overs thanks to half-centuries from Deepak Hooda and Ayush Badoni. Dushmantha Chameera rattled LSG batting as well with wickets of Shubman Gill and Vijay Shankar, but it proved to be inadequate.
South Africa dasher David Miller lauded Rahul Tewatia for his nerveless finishing of the game.
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"We tried to give ourselves the best chance, and then that one over from the spinner (Hooda) went for 21 (22 runs) and the next over (from Ravi Bishnoi) for another 19 (17 runs). It was really nice to be out there with him (Tewatia) and see what he is capable of.
In the last couple of years, Rahul has chased down some imposing totals. We were just waiting for the momentum to shift. We took our time initially and couldn't get going. But we knew that if we took it deep, we could chase 40 in the last 3 overs on this particular ground,” said Miller during a post-match press conference.
Miller was also all praises for the GT captain Hardik Pandya and said that Pandya told his players to have fun, but expected them to work hard.
He said: "I have played against him a few times. So what I have seen on the field of him in the past was exactly what I was expecting. He asked us to have fun. He wants us to work hard and wants to win. It's just about reiterating the amount of fun and what a great opportunity this is to be at the IPL and play at this level. So far, so good with his leadership. Really looking forward to working alongside him for the next two months. Just to go out and express ourselves and enjoy what we do."
On the other hand, Rahul Tewatia also spoke about his match-winning partnership with debutant Abhinav Manohar, who made 15* and hit two fours on the first two balls of the last over when 11 runs were needed.
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"The wicket was good and the communication between Miller and me was to take the game deep and during the strategic break I told Miller I will take chances in the next over as the boundary was smaller on the leg-side, and the ball wasn't spinning much. Bishnoi was bowling those googlies and after that reverse sweep, the situation was such that I had go after the bowler and had to play my shots," said Tewatia in a post-match presentation.
"During our camp, I saw Abhinav's batting and he is a very clean striker and the X-factor of our team and we have been playing together for the last few weeks now and I had complete trust in him that he will play his shots. Playing your shots in the first game with that confidence is really pleasing to see," he added.
LSG will next face CSK on March 31 in Brabourne Stadium, while GT will clash with DC on April 2 in Pune.
(ANI inputs)