IPL 2023: Punjab Kings vs Gujarat Titans Match 18 - Talking Points and Who Said What?

The scintilliating action continued in the Indian Premier League 2023 as Punjab Kings and Gujarat Titans went head-to-head against each other in Match 18 on Thursday, April 13 at Punjab Cricket Association IS Bindra Stadium in Mohali. After being put in to bat first, Punjab could score a paltry 153/8 in the first innings as their batters failed to notch up a big score.

In the second innings, Gujarat Titans got off to a flying start from their openers Wriddhiman Saha and Shubman Gill who added 48 runs for the first wicket in 28 balls. Gill went on to score a brilliant fifty as Rahul Tewatia took Gujarat home by scoring a boundary on the second last ball of the match. As a result, Gujarat Titans won the match by six wickets and one ball to spare. As Gujarat defeated Punjab, let’s take a look at the talking points from the game and who said what:

1. Mohit Sharma’s sensational comeback

The right-arm seamer was making a comeback in the IPL after three years and made the most of the opportunity as he picked 2/18 in four overs to help GT restrict Punjab from scoring big. He picked up the scalps of well-set batters Jitesh Sharma and Sam Curran and prevented PBKS batters from forming a big partnership, also winning the Player of the Match award for his match-winning performance.

2. Shubman Gill’s classy knock

The right-handed opener has carried his brilliant form from international cricket to IPL and played another classy knock for his side. Gill scored 67 off 49 balls with the help of seven fours and a six in his innings, helping the side chase down 154 on a slow wicket. He got involved in three important partnerships with Saha, Sai Sudharsan, and David Miller to take his team closer to Punjab’s total.

3. Shikhar Dhawan’s failure

The Orange Cap holder of the tournament could only manage to score 8 off 11 balls, leaving his side in all sorts of trouble at 28/2. However, despite his early dismissal, Punjab’s batters put up an improved performance from the last game and notched up in excess of 150 in the first innings.

Winning Skipper, Hardik Pandya said:

To be very honest I would not appreciate for the game to go this deep. We need to go back to the drawing board. They bowled really well. Luckily all our batters are in good nick. We should take risks and play shots in the middle overs, need to make sure the game doesn't go so deep. The ball was getting dried up, but the wicket was a belter. Wasn't surprised when Mohit and Alzarri were bowling. He has done a lot of hard work, he has shown patience and his time has come. It would have been a tough pill to swallow if the game had gone the other side. I would like to finish the game earlier, not a big fan of taking it to the last over.

Losing Skipper, Shikhar Dhawan said:

Agree with you on that thing. We did not put many runs on the board. We have to rectify that thing going forward. Absolutely - if you see the number of dot balls, if a team plays 56 balls, you end up losing the game. Losing early wickets puts you on the back foot and we need to work on that. Very proud of the bowlers, it was not a big total and taking the game till the end was tremendous. He came for practice yesterday, he pulled his muscle and another 2-3 days, he should be good to go [on Liam Livingstone's fitness].

Player of the Match, Mohit Sharma (2/18 in 4 overs) said:

I have had a good time at this venue. I thought of sticking to my variations, had a chat with Hardik in the middle overs, luckily it paid off. You need to train hard, give your 100 percent. Need to bowl according to the situation, and stick to the basics. I was given a role to bowl after 10 overs. Credit goes to the coach who has defined everyone's role in the team.