Gujarat Titans became the first team to qualify for the IPL 2022 playoffs.
Gujarat Titans (GT) opener Shubman Gill scored 63* runs on a difficult batting pitch to help GT secure an IPL 2022 playoff spot with a 62-run victory over Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at MCA Stadium in Pune on May 10 .
Gill remarked after the game that one of his goals was to end the game for his side at least three to four times, and he was glad to achieve it against Lucknow. Aside from him, no one from either squad scored a fifty. Gill commented on the pitch, saying that the ball was nipping around in the early overs, causing problems for Gujarat.
“It’s quite pleasing. When you’re there till the end, you finish the match for your team. It was one of the goals I had before the start of the season that I want to finish at least three or four matches for the team. I didn’t expect the ball to seam as much in the start but it was nipping around in the first three or four overs," Gill said after receiving the Man of the Match Award.
According to the 22-year-old, Lucknow spinner Krunal Pandya bungled the trick by not pitching the ball up because he was hesitant to bowl short balls that allowed him to rotate strike easily.
“I was expecting their spinners to get turn. I felt that they didn’t bowl up as much. If Krunal would have bowled up, it would have been difficult for us. But he was bowling short, a bit conservative and it was easy for us to manoeuvre around and we kept on picking those singles which are important on these types of wickets," Gill said.
He went on to say that being at the top of the points table is fantastic because only few people gave Gujarat a chance to make the playoffs at the start of the season.
“Coming into the season, not many people gave us a chance or thought we’d qualify but here we are sitting on top of the table so it feels pretty good," he said.
(news18 inputs)