"Today, we went from two to three" - Gujarat Titans all-rounder Rahul Tewatia and wife Ridhi Pannu welcome their first child
Gujarat Titans (GT) all-rounder Rahul Tewatia and his wife Ridhi Pannu welcomed their first child, a daughter, into their life. The 30-year-old shared the joyful news through an Instagram post on Tuesday, September 5.
Tewatia and Ridhi were engaged in February 2021 before getting married on November 29, 2021. Ridhi is known for her charming personality and love for fashion.
Rahul Tewatia captioned his post with an image of the newborn's legs, welcoming her arrival.
"Today, we went from two to three. She’s here! She’s here today.Beautiful and Sweet😍❤️ #blessed😇," he wrote.
Several fans and cricketers showered the couple with their best wishes, and the post has drawn over 30,000 likes on Instagram.
Tewatia was recently seen in the IPL a few months back, where his side, the Gujarat Titans, lost a heartbreaking final against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Ahmedabad.
Rahul Tewatia's cricketing career at a glance
Rahul Tewatia debuted for his state, Haryana, all the way back in 2013 but has played only sparingly in first-class or List-A cricket. Despite boasting decent first-class numbers of 17 wickets in seven games at an average of 30, the leg-spinner has been out of favor in red-ball cricket since 2020.
Although more prominent in List-A cricket, the 30-year-old has played in only 30 games and picked up 44 wickets at an impressive average of 23.81. Tewatia has also been sensational with the bat in the 50-over format in domestic cricket, averaging 36.15 at a strike rate of over 115.
However, his biggest calling card has been in the T20 format at the domestic and IPL levels. With bat and ball, Tewatia boasts excellent numbers in the shortest format, averaging 26.66 with the bat at a 142.72 strike rate in addition to 68 wickets in his 128 games.
More impressive is his transformation at the IPL level, where he started as a bowling all-rounder in his first few seasons before blossoming into a designated finisher in the last few editions.
In the 2020 IPL season for the Rajasthan Royals, Rahul Tewatia averaged 42.50 in 14 matches at a strike rate of 139.34. His exploits earned him a maiden call-up to the Indian T20I squad for the home series against England in 2021.
Tewatia's stock as a cold-blooded finisher has increased even further in his two seasons with the Gujarat Titans in 2022 and 2023. The southpaw scored over 300 runs in 33 games over the last two seasons at an incredible strike rate of almost 150, including several game-changing cameos.
Nicknamed the Iceman, owing to his magical finishes, Tewatia helped the Titans win the IPL in their debut season last year and played a vital role in the franchise qualifying for the final this season.
Despite turning into a destructive batter and a part-time bowler in the IPL, Tewatia still has 32 wickets in 81 games with an economy rate under eight runs per over.