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Gujarat Titans (GT) opener Shubman Gill described the six he hit off “childhood friend” Abhishek Sharma during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 match against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) as the most pleasing stroke during his knock.
GT beat SRH by 34 runs in match number 62 of IPL 2023 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad to confirm a top-two finish in the points table. Batting first, Gujarat posted 188/9, with Gill (101 off 58) notching up his maiden IPL ton. In response, Hyderabad were held to 154/9.
While Gill struck 13 fours in his superb knock, he described the six he hit off Abhishek in the 12th over of Gujarat’s innings as the stroke that made him feel really happy.
Speaking after being named the Player of the Match, the 23-year-old said at the post-match press conference:
“The most satisfying one [stroke] was probably the six off Abhishek [Sharma] because we are childhood friends. I think I told him before the match that, ‘if you bowl to me, I'm going to hit you for six’. That was most pleasing for me.”
Gill added that scoring a hundred against Hyderabad was special since he made his IPL debut against the franchise. The right-handed batter commented:
“It’s quite pleasing. I made my IPL debut against SRH and got my first hundred against them, I feel like it [life] has come a full circle. It feels great to get my first IPL hundred. Hopefully, I’ll get some more of those. Hopefully, in this season as well."
During his knock, Gill featured in a 147-run stand with Sai Sudharsan (47).
“It's all about the bowlers and situation that you are playing” - Shubman Gill
Gill narrowly missed out on a ton in the earlier IPL match against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), returning unbeaten on 94 off 51 balls. The elegant batter, however, stated that personal milestones don’t matter much to him as he focused on playing the bowlers and the situation.
The in-form cricketer added:
“It's all about the bowlers and situation that you are playing. I am not the person who dwells too much on my last innings. Doesn’t matter even if I scored a hundred or a fifty. It’s more about what I need to do in this situation, in this moment right now."
The GT opener has smashed 576 runs in 13 matches at an average of 48 and a strike rate of 146.19, with one hundred and four fifties.
