Centuries for both openers, a rare in T20 cricket; record number of sixes in IPL

Key highlights from the eighth week of the Indian Premier League-17

Centuries for both openers, a rarity in T20 cricket

It's rare to see a century in T20 cricket. However, the match between Gujarat Titans (GT) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) saw two players scoring hundreds in one innings. Batting first, GT openers Shubman Gill (104) and B Sai Sudharsan (103) scored tons to put on 210 runs for the first wicket, thus becoming only the second opening pair in the IPL to smash centuries in the same innings after Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) openers David Warner and Jonny Bairstow did it against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2019.

Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill (left) and Sai Sudharsan during their 210-run stand against CSK at Ahmedabad recently. PIC/PTI

Fourth consecutive defeat for Rajasthan Royals 

Though Rajasthan Royals have already qualified for the Playoffs, thanks to their four-match winning streak twice in the first nine matches, the then top-of-the-table team had a contrasting result this month, losing all four matches, two of them coming this week itself as they were restricted to less than 150 against CSK and Punjab Kings. The Sanju Samson-led side won't have an easy outing against table toppers Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in their last league game. However, a victory over KKR will ensure a second-placed finish for the inaugural champions.

RR players celebrate a Punjab Kings’s wicket on Wednesday. PIC/AFP

Record number of sixes in IPL

Apart from numerous records smashed this season, IPL-17 also witnessed the highest number of sixes hit in a single edition of the cash-rich league. A total of 20 sixes were smashed during the Delhi Capitals (DC) versus Lucknow Super Giants's (LSG) tie on Thursday, which took the tally to 1,125, surpassing 1,124 maximums smashed during the previous edition. As of Thursday, 1,133 sixes were hit in IPL-17. Apart from this, the KKR v Punjab Kings game last month witnessed 42 sixes, the most in a T20 match, while SRH opener Abhishek Sharma has sent 35 deliveries over the boundary line, the most this season. 

SRH’s Abhishek Sharma smashes one for a six against LSG recently. PIC/AFP

Unwanted record for Karthik

RCB's Dinesh Karthik now holds the all-time record of 18 ducks in IPL history. The wicketkeeper-batter went past Mumbai Indians (MI) opener Rohit Sharma (17 ducks) and teammate Glenn Maxwell (17) after he was caught by Delhi Capitals's (DC) Kuldeep Yadav off pacer Khaleel Ahmed. Karthik getting out for a two-ball nought didn't affect the team's morale as the Bangalore side beat DC by 47 runs in a must-win tie.

Rain pain for Gujarat Titans

GT are the unluckiest team this season, with their last two matches being washed out without a ball being bowled. GT, who have won five matches this season, were knocked out of the Playoffs race after their home match against KKR was abandoned due to rain on Monday. Unfortunately, the 2022 champions’ last league match against SRH was also washed out. Last year’s runners-up thus ended the season with 12 points from 14 games. The washout, however, led to GT’s opponents, KKR and SRH confirming their Playoffs spot.

GT captain Shubman Gill (right) and his SRH counterpart Pat Cummins greet each other after their match was abandoned due to rain in Hyderabad on Thursday. PIC/AFP

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