Shubman Gill stood at mid-off, mind racing. Two needed from two, David Miller on strike, and Prasidh Krishna with the ball. “We have a chance to win,” he told himself. What followed was a chat that lasted all of three seconds: yorker or slower one? They went with the change-up. Krishna banged in a slower bouncer, Miller was through the shot, Jos Buttler’s throw hit and Gujarat Titans pinched a match that had been sliding away.
“We were just discussing whether to go for the yorker or to go for the slower one, we decided that given the wicket how it’s playing, the slower one, a good slower one will be difficult to hit for a boundary,” Gill explained afterwards. Simple plan, tidy execution.
The Titans’ first-innings 210 for 4 felt a touch over par from the moment the new ball stopped skidding. Three of the top four – Gill, Buttler and Washington Sundar – passed fifty, leaving the camp satisfied if not ecstatic. “We always thought 210 on this [pitch] we are 10-15 runs above par,” Gill said. The last four overs produced only 42, a hint of the drag in the surface that would later stall Delhi’s chase.
Buttler, who had endured a lean T20 World Cup and a scratchy start to this IPL, was relieved more than anything. “Great to get the win, blind squirrels and all that,” he laughed, acknowledging the luck in his direct hit from the deep. “Very lucky throw but, obviously delighted, we desperately needed a win. So, glad we managed to sneak through.”
Runs for the England opener mattered too. “(Feeling) good, been searching for them (runs) a little bit. Felt in good touch actually, since I’ve been here. I’ve played for long enough to know that it’ll come back at some point. You just gotta keep working through it,” he said, sounding half-pleased, half-wary. A fifty won’t banish doubts overnight, yet it gives Titans a sturdier top order and, perhaps, calmer nerves.
On the Capitals’ side the post-mortem centred on Miller declining a straightforward single off the penultimate ball. Dale Steyn, on television duty, called it “a massive error”, while Ambati Rayudu suggested the points lost could haunt Delhi come the final week. Harsh? Maybe, yet the league table rarely forgives small mis-reads.
Still, the visitors had their moments. Tristan Stubbs’ 48 off 24 balls kept them in range and Axar Patel’s run-a-ball 34 offered ballast, though neither could quite keep pace once the Titans’ seamers took pace off. Only eight came from the last over, testament to bowling that mixed slower bouncers and wide yorkers (full deliveries aimed at the base of off stump) with just enough accuracy.
Gill, now two wins from three as full-time captain, praised the bowlers for adapting quickly. “Even when we were batting in the death, it wasn’t easy to hit the big boundaries given the slowness of the wicket. We thought if we bowled well, we should be able to win this one.” Kumar Kartikeya’s left-arm spin was quietly influential, 1 for 24 from four overs buying the quicks room at the back end.
The margin – one run, last ball – feels razor thin, yet the Titans walk away believing their processes held. The Capitals, meanwhile, must file this under “opportunities missed” and move on, fast. There are only four play-off spots; no-one needs reminding.
Next stop for Gujarat is Lucknow on 12 April. They travel with points in the bag and, just as importantly, a method that seems to fit varied conditions. Delhi have three days to shake off the what-ifs before they host Punjab. Tight tournament, this – little room for stumbles, even smaller for repeating them.
