IPL 2025: Sudharsan, Gill show conventional shots can ignite batting fireworks

If KL Rahul was the one who brought batting thunder through his majestic 112 not out off 65 balls, then B Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill took it a few notches higher by remaining unbeaten in their respective knocks of 108 off 61 balls and 93 off 53 deliveries, as their unbroken 205-run stand got GT a comprehensive ten-wicket win and a spot in the playoffs.

GT chasing 200 with an over to spare is also the highest target any team has successfully chased without losing a wicket in IPL history. A glance at the scorecard of Sunday’s game would show that it was dominated by three unbeaten knocks from three opening batters – Rahul, Sudharsan and Gill – amassing 318 runs overall.

But a closer look would show that apart from Rahul, none of the other batters could facilitate scoring at a quicker pace. While a chase of 200 would have looked stiff on the outset, the ease with which Sudharsan and Gill batted – absolute control, conventional strokeplay and getting runs by taking fewer risks against a toothless DC bowling – reiterated the point GT’s openers have been making so far; one can ignite ruthless and dominant batting fireworks even while playing copybook style shots.

“If you say, even Rahul Dravid played a T20 towards the end, or (Ajinkya) Rahane played, they are all conventional batsmen. But they still find a way to score runs with proper cricketing shots.

“These two guys have shown right through the season that you don't have to slog around to score runs at a good rate. By playing conventional cricket, I think they have been the most consistent batsmen and that is very important,” said GT assistant coach Aashish Kapoor in the post-match press conference.

It’s almost mind-boggling to see an opening pair succeed without deviating from the conventional strokeplay route, but Sudharsan and Gill, the top two run-getters in IPL 2025, have simply made it work. As a pair, Sudharsan and Gill have amassed 839 runs, at an average of 76.27, with seven 50-plus stands - three of them going past the 100-mark.

Sudharsan hit four boundaries and a six off the first nine balls he faced, including taking his state-mate T Natarajan for 20 runs in the second over. Kapoor pointed out that Sudharsan improving on his attacking strokeplay has also been fruitful in him and Gill forming a spectacular opening pair.

“I think they understand cricket themselves. They are smart cricketers and kids. Yes, you have to keep telling them sometimes. But he (Sudharsan) analyses his game himself - he wants to attack. If you see his attacking play, he is still getting boundaries, not hitting sixes. If he gets that one ball with a shot or something which he can play, he gets a six of that.

“But the rest of the shots are proper cricket attacking shots along the ground, or the cut shots or the flicks that he plays. So he is more aware to play these kinds of shots at the start of his innings – of which the percentage was less last year, and has become better this year.”

While Sudharsan brought up his fifty off 30 balls, Gill was still finding his feet, and being at 21 off 19 balls after eight overs. But he flicked a switch in the next three overs by taking a six each off against Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav and Vipraj Nigam, before getting his fifty off 33 balls, with a four off Dushmantha Chameera.

Kapoor lauded Sudharsan for taking up the attacking mantle early on, giving Gill some breathing space before opening up to take bowlers to cleaners. “I mean, Shubman was starting cautiously and also he was not timing the ball all that well. But what was important is, he didn't throw away his wicket even though the total was 200.

“It is so easy that you are chasing 200, which is 10 runs and if you are not timing the ball, you could play one or two bad shots and get out and push off. But he kept going, and I think Sai played an important role in that, because he kept scoring runs at the start.

“They were not getting bogged down. Even though he was not able to time the ball initially, Sai was playing beautifully and that took the pressure off him. So he got that extra time to get in, and then once he was in, he played some good shots.”

With the accuracy of a clock, Sudharsan and Gill expertly found gaps in the outfield - their shots being precise and decisive in equal measure. As the satisfying sound from bats of Gill and Sudharsan while hitting their textbook shots echoed through the stadium, it was yet another strong statement from GT that conventional batting can lead to captivating results, leaving every batting purist delighted on a run-fest Sunday night.