Ahmedabad, May 12 (PTI) Sai Sudharsan struck a dogged half-century, while Washington Sundar chipped in with a fluent fifty to power Gujarat Titans to 168 for five against Sunrisers Hyderabad in their Indian Premier League match here on Tuesday.
Sudharsan cracked five fours and two sixes on way to a vital 61 off 44 balls to hold the Titans together, whereas Washington’s 33-ball 50 with seven fours and a six was instrumental in adding crucial late runs on a surface which demanded application from the batters.
While Praful Hinge (3-0-17-2) was the pick among the bowlers for SRH, skipper Pat Cummins returned a measly 4-0-20-1.
The SRH pacers kept a tight leash on the home team batters who struggled to get going on the two-paced surface where they had been bowled out for 100 by Mumbai Indians.
Sai Sudharsan reaped the rewards for his patience, capitalising on scoring opportunities while stitching together useful partnerships, including a crucial 60-run fourth-wicket stand with Washington Sundar.
It was Hinge who reaped full benefits of a tidy start with the ball for the Sunrisers with two wickets in the powerplay, as the Titans recorded their lowest score of the season reaching 34/2 after six overs.
Gujarat skipper Shubman Gill (5) was lucky when Nitish Kumar Reddy could not hold on to a return catch on his follow through in the second over. But in the next, Gill flicked one off his pads towards mid-on where Heinrich Klaasen took a fine low catch in the third over.
Hinge and SRH did not have to wait for a second breakthrough when Jos Buttler (7), looking to scoop the ball after moving across the wickets, got a thick edge which was comfortably collected by Ishan Kishan behind the wickets.
Nishant Sindhu looked to counterattack after early wickets but did not make the most of an impressive start. Before the left-handed batter imperiously pulled Reddy into the stands for a six, he had struck Hinge for two impressive fours to begin with.
But Sindhu failed to get the distance when he hit one off Cummins straight to long-off, ending up with 22 off 14 balls with three fours and a six.
The first six of the innings came well after the end of the powerplay and the pressure was palpable on the home team batters to respond, which Sudharsan and Washington did well to their credit.
Both Sudharsan and Washington did not look to force themselves on the game and rather looked to rotate the strike while putting away the bad deliveries. Sakib Hussain (2/37) accounted for both these batters at the end. PTI DDV ATK
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