Gujarat Titans' sensational run to IPL 2022 playoffs: 9 wins in 12 matches

IPL 2022, LSG vs GT: On Tuesday, Gujarat Titans defeated Lucknow Super Giants and became the first team to qualify for the playoffs in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022.  

Gujarat Titans (GT), on Tuesday, May 10, became the first team to qualify for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 playoffs. After winning eight out of their first nine matches in the tournament, the Titans strained a bit following their losses at the hands of Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Mumbai Indians (MI). But they held their nerve to make it to the next round of the T20 championship.

Not many gave Gujarat Titans a chance when they assembled their squad at the IPL 2022 mega auction. Questions were asked about their batting prowess and there were doubts over Hardik Pandya’s form and fitness as the star all-rounder hadn’t played competitive cricket since the T20 World Cup.

However, both Gujarat and Hardik have proved naysayers wrong, winning 9 out of their first 12 matches and making the playoffs ahead of anyone else. Gujarat’s batting has been a sum of its parts as they have found new heroes in every win. On the other hand, Gujarat have one of the most well-rounded bowling attacks in IPL 2022.

With two matches left, Hardik Pandya and Co. have every chance of finishing in the top two and have two cracks at playing in the final at the Narendra Modi Stadium. On Tuesday, the Titans defeated the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by 62 runs at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium in Pune. On a sluggish pitch, the Titans posted 144 on the board on the back of Shubman Gill’s unbeaten 63.

Gill wasn’t overly fluent, but stayed until the very end to take the Titans to a competitive score. Cameos from David Miller and Rahul Tewatia gave the Titans’ innings lot of momentum in the death overs. Avesh Khan was the pick of the Super Giants’ bowlers with figures of 4-0-26-2. Mohsin Khan was also brilliant as he conceded only 18 runs in four overs and got the important wicket of Wriddhiman Saha.

LSG CRUMBLE UNDER PRESSURE

The Super Giants lost their first wicket in their run-chase at the score of 19, and from there on, they crumbled. Rashid Khan picked up four wickets and showed why he’s deemed one of the best spinners of late. Left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore made his IPL debut and picked up two vital wickets of Ayush Badoni and Mohsin Khan.