'Remarkable Achievement' - Skipper Hardik Pandya shines again as GT clinch IPL 2022 title

Indian Premier League (IPL) has a new champion now as Gujarat Titans have clinched the title in their debut season. They couldn’t have got the glory more convincingly as the final clash was a mere one-sided affair. The high-flying Rajasthan Royals were simply outplayed and suffered a crushing seven-wicket defeat. While many players contributed to GT’s stellar win, skipper Hardik Pandya was the stand-out performer.

Earlier in the match, Rajasthan Royals won the toss and opted to bat at the Narendra Modi Stadium in  Ahmedabad. The Men in Pink got off to a decent start with openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Jos Buttler adding 31 runs for the opening wicket. However, once the former was dismissed, things went south for the Men in Pink.

Hardik Pandya broke the backbone of RR’s batting line-up

GT skipper Hardik Pandya delivered a stellar spell in the middle overs and dismissed the likes of Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, and Shimron Hetmyer. Notably, Buttler did get a start but he was dismissed after scoring 39 off 35 balls. The Royals couldn’t recover afterwards as GT bowlers were on a roll. As a result, the inaugural-season champions were restricted to a paltry 130/9 in their allotted 20 overs. Besides Hardik, left-arm spinner R Sai Kishore also bagged a couple of wickets.

Meanwhile, the Titans didn’t get off to a great start either as the in-form Wriddhiman Saha perished for just five runs. Even Matthew Wade was dismissed for eight as Trent Boult and Prasidh Krishna were brilliant with the new ball. However, then arrived Hardik Pandya in the middle and it was one-way traffic since then. The all-rounder joined forces with Shubman Gill and the duo added 63 runs for the third wicket.

It was a well-paced partnership as both batters were watchful in the initial overs but also found the fence after getting settled. Meanwhile, some hopes ignited in the RR camp when Yuzvendra Chahal dismissed Hardik for 34. However, in walked David Miller and boosted the scoring rate even further. The southpaw scored an unbeaten 32 off 19 deliveries as GT crossed the line in 18.1 overs, clinching the contest by seven wickets. Credit must also go to Shubman Gill, who remained unbeaten at 45.

Meanwhile, let’s look at how Twitter reacted to GT’s title triumph:

Congrats to @gujarat_titans – the entire team and the all the management esp #vikramsolanki & #AshishNehra ! Good entry in style into the IPL. #IPLFinals

— Azhar Mahmood (@AzharMahmood11) May 29, 2022

What a team congratulations @gujarat_titans 🏆 ❤️👑 @IPL specially skipper @hardikpandya7 @rashidkhan_19 @ShubmanGill @MdShami11 @DavidMillerSA12 😊👏👏👏👏

— Rahul Sharma (@ImRahulSharma3) May 29, 2022

Gujrat Titans!! 🏆
Well deserved and Well Played throughout the tournament.
Hard luck to Rajasthan Royals!

Kya baat hai 👍🏻👍🏻👍🏻#AavaDe #GTvRR #IPLFinal #IPL2022 #IPL #GujaratTitans

— Dhawal Kulkarni (@dhawal_kulkarni) May 29, 2022

Hardik Pandya waking up in Ahmedabad tomorrow 😄 #GTvsRR #IPLFinal #IPL2022 pic.twitter.com/5AG8BXRRTO

— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) May 29, 2022

What an amazing season by @gujarat_titans. To bring together a new group of players & gel so quickly speaks volumes of great leadership on & off the field. Wonderful to see a packed house, this is what we love the most about this competition, the fans. Well done to @BCCI as well

— Lisa Sthalekar (@sthalekar93) May 29, 2022

Gary Kirsten is a proper cricket coach .. 👍

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) May 29, 2022

Dropped on 0.. Will rue that missed easy chance which chahal dropped..30 for 3 in a low scoring chase…could have been a different proposition, might still not have won them the game but u can only do what u can do #RRvGT #IPLFinal

— Kartik Murali (@kartikmurali) May 29, 2022

Fantastic achievement for a new franchise … If India need a captain in a couple of years I wouldn’t look past @hardikpandya7 … Well done Gujurat .. #IPL2022

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) May 29, 2022

.@gujarat_titans have bowled like Titans tonight 🔥 Brilliant ball by @MdShami11 to end the innings. Great show by the bowlers to restrict @rajasthanroyals to a low score of 130. Are we in for a low score thriller tonight? #RRvGT #IPLFinals

— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) May 29, 2022

Remember The Titans!
Congratulations @hardikpandya7 and @gujarat_titans 🙌🏼👏🏽 #IPLFinals pic.twitter.com/bneB3NChzF

— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) May 29, 2022

Brilliant bowling throughout the tournament @yuzi_chahal bro congratulations 😊👏👏👏 #purplecap @IPL

— Rahul Sharma (@ImRahulSharma3) May 29, 2022