Badoni wraps up the points for LSG with a couple of wickets in the final over. They win by 33 runs. GT might have thrown away the opportunity to finish in the top two. RCB play tomorrow against SRH and will go top with a win.
GT’s middle-order falling like a pack of cards. O’Rourke is everywhere! Shahbaz Ahmed is delighted. The lanky Kiwi avoided the collision and takes an easy catch at gully.
Arshad Khan c O’Rourke b Shahbaz Ahmed 1 (3)
GT: 193/6 (18)
Two in the same over for O’Rourke! Tewatia has hit this straight to long-on. What an over this, four runs and two wickets.
Rahul Tewatia c Himmat Singh b O’Rourke 2 (3)
GT: 186/5 (16.6)
Partnership broken! O’Rourke has done it again. Cut shorts Rutherford’s cameo. Rutherford tried to flick this, but the ball hits the toe. Bishnoi takes a fine catch running in from midwicket
Sherfane Rutherford c sub (Ravi Bishnoi) b O’Rourke 38 (22)
GT: 182/4 (16.1)
Another massive over for GT! Shahrukh went absolutely berserk there, taking Akash Deep to the cleaners. The RRR is now down to 13.5 with four to play. Shahrukh said before the game that GT’s middle order is ready to step up if needed. That is exactly what they have done
GT: 182/3 (16)
19 coming off that one with Rutherford and Shahrukh going berserk. The equation is down to 71 off the last five. Gettable. But, does GT have the firepower if these two get out?
GT: 165/3 (15)
Shahrukh does enough to loft this over mid-off! These are welcome runs for GT. The asking rate has shot 15 plus. Next two overs will be crucial for the home side
GT: 139/3 (13.3)
15 off the 12th! GT are definitely in contention but the RRR is 14. They need a big 20+ over. With Shahrukh and Rutherford, they’ll surely fancy their chances.
GT: 122/3 (12)
First boundary after 12 balls! Shahrukh cuts it early to find the gap. Much-needed boundary with the RRR now over 14. Excellent recovery this from the LSG bowlers.
GT: 107/3
Akash has bowled a peach here! Returns after injury and cleans up Buttler with a slower one. Big wicket this for LSG. Akash brings out the infamous signature celebration of Digvesh Rathi, who is suspended for the game.
Jos Buttler b Akash Singh 33 (18)
GT: 96/3 (9.3)
What a catch! Avesh gets Gill but it’s all about that catch from Abdul Samad. He sprinted in and put in a forward dive with perfect timing to gobble it.
Shubman Gill c Abdul Samad b Avesh Khan 35 (20)
GT: 85/2 (7.6)
Akash Singh’s right hand is bleeding! Freakish incident. Thankfully, it’s not his bowling hand. He is going off the field for treatment. Avesh Khan will bowl the remaining five balls of the over.
GT: 57/1 (5.1)
Breakthrough! O’Rourke strikes and GT’s opening stand has been broken. Sudharsan chips it to mid off and Markram takes a sharp catch diving forward. Big wicket
Sai Sudharsan c Markram b O’Rourke 21 (16)
GT: 46/1 (4.3)
What a shot! Take a bow, Gill! He gets on top of it quickly and flat bats it over the long boundary over wide long on. It was not a bad ball at all. GT are on the charge
GT: 38/0 (3.4)
Sai Sudharsan was dismissed by Akash Deep on the second ball of the over but none of the Gujarat Titans players could notice it. As Sudharsan tried to play a front-foot drive, he got hit front pad brushed before his bat met the ball and it ran away for a four. As there was no appeal, umpire too was not concerned. Replays and ball tracking revealed that Sudharsan was LBW out.
GT 19/0 (2)
Akash Singh was hit for two fours in the first over by Sai Sudharsan. The southpaw scored a century in the last game. Can he repeat his heriocs tonight? Gujarat Titans badly need both their openers Sudharsan and Shubman Gill to fire in unison to chase down this massive total.
GT 11/0 (1)
A good length ball outside off stump from Akash Singh and Sai Sudharsan has played a lofted drive on it for a four through the covers region. Sudharsan and GT are off the mark in the chase of 236 against LSG.
LSG go big in Ahmedabad, thanks to Mitchell Marsh’s 117. They post 235/2 in 20 overs with contributions from Markram (36), Nicky P (56*) and Rishabh Pant (16*). Bizarre day at the office for the LSG bowlers. Would need an incredible batting performance to chase this down.
50 up for Nicky P! Just 23 balls. LSG are on the charge and 250+ seems like a possibility now with Pooran and Marsh murdering the ball.
LSG: 199/1 (17.3)
A 56-ball century for Mitch Marsh! His first in the IPL and second in T20 cricket. The entire LSG dugout gets up to applaud him. It’s also the first century by an overseas player this season. LSG have completely destroyed GT today
Pooran takes down Siraj! Siraj went on to sledge him after bowling a short-pitched ball. Pooran responded with a six and four. At this rate, LSG are going to post over 220.
LSG: 180/1 (16)
This was in the air for a while but it lands safely into the crowd. Pooran smacks it over long-off after denying a single.
LSG: 158/1 (14.4)
Pooran starts from where Marsh left! Weird call from Gill to give the ball back to Rashid. 25 off his last and a six to start off the second. Can Rashid forge a comeback here?
LSG: 142/1 (13.1)
6,4,6,4,4! Marsh welcomes Rashid with a bang. 25 off his first over and Marsh is now into the 80s. Rashid is lucky as the last ball also hit the bottom of the bat and could’ve gone anywhere. Incredible hitting
LSG: 132/1 (12)
Breakthrough! Sai’s persistent pays off. Goes wide again but Markram, unlike Marsh, can only find the fielder’s hands at long-off. Can GT now the turn the tide after this dismissal?
Aiden Markram c Shahrukh Khan b Sai Kishore 36 (24)
LSG: 92/1 (9.5)
Another half-century for Mitch Marsh! And what a way to get there. Sai goes straight and full and Marsh makes room to hit it straight over the bowler’s head.
LSG: 90/0 (9.2)
This is a big challenge for Gill! He has been exemplary as a leader but Marsh and Markram are posing a huge threat to GT’s hopes of finishing in top 2. They need a breakthrough but Gill has tried everything so far, except Rashid Khan.
83/0 (9)
Pulled over deep square leg! A tad bit short from Prasidh and Marsh punishes him. Smokes this over the shorter boundary and the fielder deployed there can only watch it sail over his head.
LSG: 63/0 (6.4)
Solid end to the powerplay for LSG! Markram is batting on a different level. GT bowlers have struggled so far. Gill has now give the ball to his fourth pacer and the Purple Cap holder, Prasidh Krishna.
LSG: 53/0 (6)
Picked up non-chalantly and this lands just behind the rope! Excellent shot from Markram. He stands tall and pulls that shorter over the midwicket.
LSG: 45/0 (5.2)
Rabada replaces Arshad, who was receiving treatment after having a nasty fall twice in the same over. Even Siraj is having some treatment now after being struck on the hand by that straight shot from Marsh.
LSG: 26/0 (3)
Marsh hits it straight to the bowler but Siraj fails to grab it. Difficult chance. No reaction time at all due to the power with which it was struck. Meanwhile, Arshad Khan is getting some treatment beyond the rope
LSG: 25/0 (2.3)
Arshad has gone down again. Physio out to have a look again. Let’s hope he is fine. Some sawdust has been added to the landing area. He is back up again to complete the over. Go easy, Arshad!
LSG: 21/0 (1.4)
Arshad slips horribly while landing on the crease. Escapes major injury. Marsh was quick to check on him. The physio is out, and the good thing is he’s back on his feet and smiling. He will continue with the over.
Siraj starts off with a loose ball and Markram leans into that nicely to caress that along the ground. Into the gap at covers
LSG: 4/0 (0.1)
GT are wearing a special lavender kit to raise awareness against cancer. Incredible initiative from the table toppers.
Lucknow Super Giants (Playing XI): Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant(w/c), Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Himmat Singh, Shahbaz Ahmed, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, William O’Rourke
Gujarat Titans (Playing XI): Shubman Gill(c), Jos Buttler(w), Sherfane Rutherford, Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Arshad Khan, Ravisrinivasan Sai Kishore, Kagiso Rabada, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna
Shubman Gill opts to bowl. He added: “Looks like a good wicket. It’ll be better to chase a target down. You want momentum getting into the qualifiers, these two games are important. Sudharsan and I complement each other nicely, we have similar games. We just see the ball and keep our intent and scoring. Same team.”
Pitches in Ahmedabad have been a batter’s paradise with teams batting first winning four of the five games so far. However, there has been some assistance for the pacers with the pace and bounce on offer.
Shubman Gill needs 100 runs to complete 2500 runs for GT in IPL. He will become the first player to do so.
Gujarat Titans: Shubman Gill (capt), B Sai Sudharsan, Jos Buttler (wk), Sherfane Rutherford, M Shahrukh Khan, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Kagiso Rabada, Arshad Khan, R Sai Kishore, Mohammed Siraj, Prasidh Krishna.
Lucknow Super Giants: Mitchell Marsh, Aiden Markram, Rishabh Pant (capt & wk), Nicholas Pooran, Ayush Badoni, Abdul Samad, Shardul Thakur, Ravi Bishnoi, Akash Deep, Avesh Khan, Manimaran Siddharth, Will O’Rourke.
Big selection dilemma for LSG as their best bowler, Digvesh Rathi, will miss the game owing to suspension. Digvesh clashed with Abhishek Sharma during LSG’s crushing loss to SRH that ended their playoff hopes. Digvesh was fined 50 per cent of his match fees for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct and it was his third Level 1 offence under Article 2.5 this season and hence he accumulated two demit point for a total of five, which result in a one-game suspension. LSG have Shahbaz Ahmed and Manimaran Siddharth to replace him as the second spinner.
Reports have been circulating over Rishabh Pant’s future at LSG, with the wicketkeeper-batter likely to be released by the franchise. However, the LSG captain has quashed such rumours.
“I understand fake News gives more traction To content but let’s not built everything around it . Little sense and credible news will help more rather making fake news with agenda . Thanks have a good day . Let’s be responsible and sensible what we put out on social media,” Pant posted on X.
With 18 points from 12 matches, GT sit top of the table. If they win both of their remaining matches, they will remain there and will get two bites at the cherry to reaching the final. When they reached the finals in the 2022 and 2023 seasons, they did so by topping the league.
Good evening and welcome to our live coverage of the IPL 2025 clash between Gujarat Titans and Lucknow Super Giants. GT, who have already qualified for the playoffs, are unlikely to tinker as they look to strengthen their hopes of a top-two finish. LSG, on the other hand, will be playing for pride and to snap a four-game losing streak.
