GT vs RR Match Report: David Miller hits hat-trick of sixes, Gujarat beats Rajasthan by 7 wickets in final

The first finalists of IPL 2022 have been decided and Gujarat Titans, who have been performing consistently well in this season, have made their place in the IPL final to be held on 29 May. In the first qualifier match of the playoff held at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, Gujarat defeated Rajasthan (GT beats RR) by 7 wickets. In the last over, David Miller hit three consecutive sixes to take the team to the final. This win may have got a finalist, but the doors are still not closed for Rajasthan and the team will get the advantage of being on the top two in the points table. They will get one more chance to reach the finals. For this, in the second qualifier, there will be a match between Lucknow and Bangalore against the winner of the Eliminator to be held on Wednesday.

Experienced wicketkeeper-batsman Wriddhiman Saha (0), who has been performing consistently since coming into the opening for Gujarat this season, did not work at all this time. Left-arm pacer Trent Boult returned him on the second ball of the innings. However, despite this the Gujarat batsmen did not take the pressure. Shubman Gill (35 runs, 21 balls) along with Matthew Wade (35 runs, 30 balls) made it rain boundaries in the powerplay. Both of them created a strong base for the team by sharing 71 runs in just 43 balls. However, while trying to take two runs, there was a misunderstanding between the two and Gill was run out. Then in a while, Wade also started walking.

Miller-Hardik’s century partnership

The match seemed to be coming from here in Rajasthan’s hand, but captain Hardik Pandya (40 not out, 27 balls) and David Miller (68 not out, 38 balls, 3 fours, 5 sixes) had different intentions. Despite the tight bowling and strong fielding of Rajasthan, both of them showed a ray of victory to their team by making an important partnership. David Miller completed his half-century in 35 balls and took it close to the target. However, in the 19th over, Obed McCoy conceded just 6 runs in favor of Rajasthan, after which Gujarat needed 16 runs in the last over. The famous Krishna had the ball in his hand, but Miller took the team to the final with glory by hitting consecutive sixes in the first three balls. Miller and Hardik added 106 runs in 61 balls for the fourth wicket.

Stunning innings of Butler and Samson

Earlier, Rajasthan Royals had scored a strong score of 188 runs for 6 wickets on the back of the explosive innings of Jos Buttler (89) and captain Sanju Samson (47). Devdutt Padikkal also contributed a quick 28 runs. Butler hit 12 fours and two sixes in his 56-ball innings. Thanks to his innings, the Royals team was able to add 61 runs in the last four overs.

Rajasthan also lost the wicket of opener Yashasvi Jaiswal early, but captain Samson hit 47 runs (5 fours, 3 sixes) in just 26 balls and led the team fast. Samson also hit two fours on R Sai Kishore but gave an easy catch to Joseph off the same left-arm spinner. Butler, who failed in the last 5 innings, took a long time to come into color in this innings. He had played 38 balls till the 16th over, but could only score 39 runs. Then his style changed from the 17th over and he scored 50 runs in the next 18 balls.