"I was a little nervous, to be honest" - David Miller reflects on a tense run-chase over RR in the IPL 2022 Qualifier 1
Gujarat Titans (GT) batter David Miller opened up about his approach during the 189-run chase alongside captain Hardik Pandya in the IPL 2022 Qualifier 1 against the Rajasthan Royals (RR). The Proteas ace was the star of the show after leading the new franchise to the final with an unbeaten 68 off 38 deliveries.
Coming into bat in the tenth over, GT were placed at 85-3 at the Eden Gardens. The left-handed batter took a while to find his groove after scoring just 10 off his first 14 deliveries. He eventually made up for his slow start and sealed GT's qualification in style with three consecutive sixeds in the final over off Prasidh Krishna.
🛫 #NowBoarding 😀
#AavaDe #iplfinal #SeasonOfFirsts https://t.co/HaDplczZpD
Admitting that he was nervous over the course of the run chase, Miller said in a post-match interaction with Shubman Gill:
"I was a little nervous, to be honest. But, Hardik kept saying let us just play good cricket shots and keep hitting the gap. As you saw, he was not running too fast, I enjoy running between the wickets pretty hard. But, it ended out working pretty well, it was a fast outfield, so hitting the gaps was the best call."
The GT skipper, too, remained unbeaten at the other end. Coming into bat at No.4 following the unfortunate dismissal of Shubman Gill, Pandya finished with 40 off 27 deliveries.
The detailed IPL 2022 schedule are available here.
"Seriously good team performance if you think of all individual contributions" - David Miller
Electing to bowl first, GT ended up conceding 188 in the first innings. Rashid Khan restricted the run scoring on a batting surface, conceding only 15 off his four overs. The rest of the bowling attack went for runs while poor fielding also attributed to the mammoth score.
STAY TUNED! ⌛
In conversation with @gujarat_titans' @DavidMillerSA12 & @ShubmanGill. 👍 👍
Coming 𝗦𝗢𝗢𝗡 on IPLT20.COM
#TATAIPL | #GTvRR https://t.co/EWK2FezI38
In reply, despite losing home-town hero, Wriddhiman Saha, to a golden duck, Shubman Gill took charge in the powerplay. The youngster scored 35 off 21 deliveries on his former IPL home ground.
Acknowledging the performances of his teammates enroute to the final, Miller said:
"An unbelievable feeling to be honest, 12 years of IPL and this is the second time I've qualified. It does not come around too many times, to be honest, but it feels special to be in the final and to take the boys over the line was cool. Seriously good team performance if you think of all individual contributions."
The Proteas batter will be making his first IPL final appearance since 2014 while Gill will play his second consecutive final. GT will face the winner of Qualifier 2 in the final in Ahmedabad on May 29 (Sunday).