IPL 2022: Top 3 Shubman Gill knocks in the league
The league stage of the IPL has ended and the playoffs will officially begin tonight as the Gujarat Titans (GT) will take on the Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Qualifier 1 at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.
The winner of this contest will go straight to the final. The losing IPL team will get another shot in Qualifier 2 to be played in Ahmedabad with the winner of the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) versus Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) Eliminator clash.
Gujarat Titans topped the IPL 2022 points table with 10 wins out of their 14 games. They also won the league game against the Rajasthan Royals by 37 runs.
With the likes of Hardik Pandya, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan and Mohammed Shami, the Titans have shown balance, stature and excellence throughout the season.
And though the opening pair of Wriddhiman Saha and Shubman Gill suffered in the middle of the tournament, they have shown promise in their last few games.
Shubman Gill has scored 403 runs in 14 matches for GT at an average of 31. He has also achieved his career-best of 96 runs this season. Moreover, if he hits five more sixes in GT's remaining games, he will reach 50 IPL maximums.
Gill will be looking to produce a big innings to power his team through to the final and on that note, let's take a look at three of his best batting performances in the league's history.
#1 76(45) - KKR vs MI in IPL 2019
In the 47th match of IPL 2019, Gill's innings powered the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to a huge total against the Mumbai Indians (MI).
Having been asked to bat first, KKR openers Shubman Gill and Chris Lynn walked out with the intention of outbatting Rohit Sharma's side.
They both went after a quality bowling side like Mumbai's and stitched a 96-run stand in under 10 overs. Chris Lynn was dismissed after that but Andre Russell replaced him to continue the power-hitting.
Shubman Gill scored 76 off 45 deliveries, laced with six fours and four sixes. Russell, on the other end, scored a 80*(40) to help KKR register 232/2 in 20 overs.
The Mumbai batters fell one after the other at KKR's might, except for Hardik Pandya, who fought single-handedly at the death. However, despite scoring 91(34), Pandya couldn't take them home and KKR won by a margin of 34 runs.
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#2 70*(62) - KKR vs SRH in IPL 2020
Shubman Gill scored 440 runs in 14 games in IPL 2020 with his highest score of the season coming in the match against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH). Batting first, both SRH openers David Warner and Jonny Bairstow were dismissed with the team score under 60.
Manish Pandey's half-century and partnership with Wriddhiman Saha in the middle helped steer SRH to 142/4. Shubman Gill and Sunil Narine opened for KKR but the latter was dismissed in the second over itself.
However, Shubman Gill carried KKR on his shoulders and remained unbeaten till the end to score 70 off 62 balls. The 22-year-old and Eoin Morgan's quick innings at the death saw KKR through with seven wickets and 12 balls to spare.
#3 96(59) - GT vs PBKS in IPL 2022
In the 16th game of the ongoing IPL 2022, Gill played his career-best knock against the Punjab Kings (PBKS). Batting first, the Punjab Kings scored 189/9 with the help of Liam Livingstone's 64(27).
With a huge target in sight, Shubman Gill walked out with Matthew Wade to chase it down as soon as possible. Although Wade was soon dismissed, it didn't stop Gill from going after the Punjab bowlers.
Shubman Gill played a clean innings and scored 96 off 59 balls, including 11 boundaries and a maximum. This helped GT cross the line with six wickets to spare and Gill was named the Player of the Match.