IPL 2023: Gujarat Titans crush Royal Challengers Banglore by 6 wickets

Shubman Gill outclasses his idol Virat Kohli as Gujarat Titans knocked Royal Challengers Bangalore out of the Indian Premier League 2023 with a 6-wicket win. In a must-win match for RCB, Kohli slammed a sublime century to help his team post a formidable 197/5 at M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. However, Shubman spoiled the party for RCB with another masterclass century while chasing the target.

Shubman slammed his 2nd back-to-back century with a six which also sealed a win for Gujarat Titans. The heartbreaking 6-wicket loss for RCB allowed Mumbai Indians to qualify for the playoffs as they will face Lucknow Super Giants in the eliminator.

Chasing the 198-run target, Gujarat Titan lost opener Wriddhiman Saha early for 12. The wicketkeeper batter looked rusty and Mohammed Siraj took advantage of it by getting an early wicket in the third over. However, RCB had to wait for almost 13 overs after that to take the second wicket as Shubman and Vijay Shankar shared a 123-run stand for the second wicket and put Titans’ chase back on track. Shankar, who came out as an Impact Player, scored valuable 53 runs off 35 balls which was laced with 7 fours and 2 sixes.

Shubman displayed his class and followed his idol - Virat Kohli’s footsteps to dominate the bowlers at Chinnaswamy. He stamped his authority over the RCB bowlers with his



classy boundaries in front of the wicket.

RCB managed to bounce back a bit by taking three wickets in quick succession but Shubman held his ground and took his team over the line by smashing fours and sixes at regular intervals.

However, in the end, Shubman stood tall to silence the Chinnaswamy with six straight down the ground which broke Kohli’s and RCB’s hearts once again.

Shubman scored 104 runs* off 52 balls and struck 5 fours and 8 sixes to take complete advantage of the short boundaries.

Earlier, Kohli scored his record 7th IPL century in the all-important clash for Royal Challengers Bangalore. He once again showcased his class when the other RCB batter failed to get going. Kohli scored unbeaten 101 runs under pressure and struck 13 fours and a six during his magnificent knock.

With the rain gods threatening to spoil RCB’s play-off plans during the day, the match that started half an hour late saw Kohli (101 not out off 61 balls) bring back his 2016 avatar. He held all the aces during his knock that had 13 fours and a six.

His innings was priceless in the context that none of the other RCB batters could even reach 30 and just like the good old days, ‘King Kohli’ set the narrative by playing with line, length and minds of the bowlers.