"He was the biggest surprise" - Sanjay Manjrekar hails GT's David Miller for his impactful performances in IPL 2022
Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar recently stated that David Miller contributed significantly with the bat for Gujarat Titans (GT) and named him as one of the top performers from their title-winning IPL 2022 campaign.
Speaking on ESPNcricinfo, Manjrekar mentioned that David Miller had failed to make an impact in the IPL in recent years. However, he pointed out that the southpaw turned things around with his stint with GT in the latest edition.
The cricketer-turned-commentator heaped praise on the South African batter for delivering in crunch situations for the Gujarat-based side in the competition. He also suggested that this was Miller's best IPL season ever.
"David Miller was the biggest surprise. Apart from his first couple of years, all the other seasons had proved to be a failure for him. He suddenly stepped up while playing for a new franchise this year. It was his best IPL season. He batted really well in the final and also played a match-winning knock in Qualifier 1."
It is worth mentioning that Miller amassed 481 runs from 16 games in IPL 2022. Furthermore, his runs came at an impressive strike rate of 142.72 and finished with a fantastic batting average of 68.71.
The left-hander contributed with 32 crucial runs from just 19 deliveries in the all-important IPL 2022 final against the Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Sunday. He helped his side chase down a total of 130 comfortably in the 19th over.
"We still cannot call GT a big team yet" - Sanjay Manjrekar
The 56-year-old further added that while GT have been crowned champions in their maiden IPL season, they will need to display consistency in the coming years to become a big team.
He stated that RR will also have to do the same in the subsequent seasons.
He opined that the likes of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI) have dominated for several years because they have had a number of players who can win their games on a consistent basis.
Manjrekar believes that GT and RR must do the same to be called strong teams.
"If a team has won, it is because they have got everything right in that particular season. We still cannot call GT a big team yet. While they have won the championship, it remains to be seen how they will come back and perform next year.
"The same goes for RR, who made it to the final after many years. If they are able to deliver similar performances next year, then we can say that two more strong teams have come. While CSK and MI were at their peak, they had 8-9 players who helped them win matches consistently."
𝗖. 𝗛. 𝗔. 𝗠. 𝗣. 𝗜. 𝗢. 𝗡. 𝗦! 🏆 🙌
That moment when the @gujarat_titans captain @hardikpandya7 received the IPL trophy from the hands of Mr. @SGanguly99, President, BCCI and Mr. @JayShah, Honorary Secretary, BCCI. 👏 👏
#TATAIPL | #GTvRR https://t.co/QKmqRcemlY
The Hardik Pandya-led side secured a decisive seven-wicket win over RR at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad to clinch the coveted championship trophy.
The side have received appreciation from all quarters for their dominant run in the tournament this year.