Gujarat Titans (GT) earned a grand win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the most recent match of the IPL 2022, as Rahul Tewatia and Rashid Khan combined to score 25 runs in the last over and added 59 runs in the last 24 balls to take GT to a win.
Chasing 196 to win Rahul Tewatia (40*) and Rashid Khan (31*) turned the game on its head, with the latter hitting three massive sixes in the last over against Marco Jansen to steer the side to its seventh win of the season and moved to the top spot in the IPL 2022 points table.
Rashid had a bad day with the ball, giving away 45 runs with no wickets to show, but came to the party with the bat. He hit Marco Jansen for three sixes in the last over as he remained unbeaten on 31.
In a conversation with GT captain Hardik Pandya and Rahul Tewatia, Rashid was quizzed about his odd shot, where he uses the power of his wrist to slog the balls through the onside was questioned by the live broadcasters as well.
Rashid delved into the matter and named his stroke 'The Snake Shot' and went on to explain why he doesn't fancy a full swing of the bat.
"I call it the Snake Shot. When a snake bites someone it springs back. When the ball is too full, I can't finish the shot completely. My body position doesn't allow me to finish the shot. If I try to do that, I can't generate the power. So I have worked on it a lot and strengthened my wrists for it," Rashid said in the video.
Rashid further stated that he knew that there were runs in the deck, and he had discussed with Tewatia that 'if they can score against us, then we can do too.'
On the other hand, GT captain Hardik Pandya revealed that he was preparing for the super over and was stopped by head coach Ashish Nehra.
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“I've started watching the matches as a neutral nowadays. Neither I'm too happy, nor too sad, because my behavior will have an effect on the dugout as well. But in all games, I and Ashu pa (Ashish Nehra) feel 'this game is getting tighter'. I was getting ready for Super Over but Ashu bhai said, 'Hey, hold on! We are finishing this here only'. You (to Tewatia) sent the thigh pad back and I thought, these guys are going for Super Over!,” Hardik told Rashid and Tewatia.
Tewatia, then, explained the reason behind sending back the thigh pad.
“I thought, if the bowler bowls a yorker, Rashid bhai will play the shot that he usually plays through the middle of his legs towards square boundary. I thought that if it is not a six, I have to run no matter what. But Rashid bhai did it,” Tewatia explained.
With the win, Gujarat Titans now have 14 points in the season and are firmly at the top of the table with a game's advantage. Sunrisers, meanwhile, remain third with 10 points.
Here is the video:
