GT WIN IPL 2022 This is what dreams look like. Gujarat Titans are IPL champions in their first-ever season. Pandya believed. Rashid believed and so did Gill, Miller, and Shami. What a night for the new franchise. Gill finishes things off with a six as the home fans see their team produce a title triumph. Clinical performance and a seven-wicket win. Miller smashed 32 off 19, in the end, to ensure there was no last-minute drama. Spare a thought for RR. Sports can be cruel at times. If there is a winner, there has to be a loser too. They had a splendid run with Buttler carrying the batting unit. They had a solid bowling lineup but didn’t have enough runs on the board. It’ll be a tough night but RR made their fans very proud. PANDYA GONE Chahal is pumped as he’s removed, Pandya. A sharp leg spinner and Pandya edged the away going delivery to first slip. Pandya is not happy and he’s making it clear in the dugout. The 63-run stand has come to an end and RR has a small hope now. AWARDS: • Orange Cap – Jos Buttler • Purple Cap – Yuzvendra Chahal • Player of the Final – Hardik Pandya • Emerging Player of the Season – Umran Malik • Player of the season – Jos Buttler HERE’S WHAT THE GT PLAYERS HAD TO SAY  SHUBMAN GILL: It means a lot. After winning the under-19 World Cup, winning the IPL is just as big. It is my fourth year. I wanted to be there till the end and that was the talk with the coaches. Glad I took them over the line. Our bowlers bowled well to restrict them to 130. We wanted to keep them under 150 but fortunately, it was much less. RAHUL TEWATIA: We were relaxed even in the qualifier game, we knew we had done well to top the league, and we were confident about finishing well. Don’t know about party plans, but someone asked me about goals for the tournament. I said I had no personal goal, the only thing was to win the tournament for my team. Everyone was saying we were short of an experienced batter, but the trust shown in myself and Miller by the team management in the middle order was outstanding. Hardik just told me to go out there and finish off games. LOCKIE FERGUSON: I couldn’t be more rapped for the boys, finishing with a win. (On his fastest delivery) Very proud of the boys for the way they bowled. Hardik was superb too, he led from the front. DAVID MILLER: It’s been a phenomenal journey, finishing it at the back end was a special feeling, but it has been a collective effort, everyone has stuck up their hand and performed well. (On Pandya) He’s been very relaxed, we’ve had a very good bond with Ashish (Nehra) and Hardik. He’s got better and better as the competition went on, tactically he’s been brilliant. Just grown from strength to strength. RASHID KHAN: We assessed the wicket well, we knew it would be hard to chase down 150. Everyone had to take responsibility, we did well to come back well in the middle overs. He is the only guy whom we didn’t want to bowl to and I’m happy that he’s part of our team (on Shubman Gill), Biggest achievement of your career is to be part of a winning IPL team. You always want to do well in big competitions like this. Winning tournaments like this, you’ll need to put in a lot of hard work and this is certainly a high point of my career. MATTHEW WADE: Just the team environment, relaxing environment, Hardik, Rashid were leading from the front. It was a family atmosphere, everyone felt welcome, and Ashish [Nehra] ensured that. Here everyone gets net time, everyone gets a chance. It has been amazing, hopefully, we can come back next year in front of these fans. MOHAMMED SHAMI: We needed to start the tournament well (on the first ball dismissal of KL in the team’s first game), and set up a template for the team. The idea was only to start well for the team and concentrate on the line and length. We (himself and Saha) have known each other well for the last 20 years and have a good understanding as well. WRIDDHIMAN SAHA: This is my 5th and 2nd final I have won. Someone said our team was not good after the auctions, but we proved them wrong. The first ball he bowled was outstanding, everyone contributed and it was a team performance. HALF-CENTURY STAND Ashwin has been spanked for 15 in his opening over – a four and a six from Pandya – and GT are cruising now. Gill and Pandya raised a fifty partnership and helped in reducing the chase to an almost routine one after some early pressure. SECOND OPPORTUNITY Gill gets another chance. A googly from Chahal and Gill wanted to go big. Doesn’t time well and it goes up in the air. Hetmyer gets there at cover but can’t lay a hand on it. In the first eight over, GT has played out 32 dot balls. Is this game slipping away? BOULT STRIKES And now Wade falls. Length ball and the traditional outswinger from the pacer. Tucked straight to mid-wicket and GT has lost two early in the chase. Will this get tricky? SHOCKER Chahal has dropped Gill. Length ball and it was coming in for Gill. The opener got a big inside edge and the ball then thudded into the thigh pad. Should have been an easy take for Chahal at square leg and he makes a meal of it. Sensationally poor from an experienced player. Prasidh comes on in the second over and knocks over Saha on the fourth ball. Could have had both openers but Chahal wasn’t up to the mark. GT NEEDS 131 TO WIN IPL 2022 Hardik Pandya ended with the second-best figures by a captain in an IPL final. His 4-14-17-3 has ensured GT have a superb opportunity to win the IPL in their maiden season. Remember, Samson wanted to bat first and Hardik wanted to bowl. Both captains got what they wanted and one of them executed his plans to perfection. Don’t forget Rashid, he ends with 4-9-18-1 This is not over yet. There’s the pressure of chasing in the final. RR has a solid bowling line-up. Think about Gill. He had the opportunity to win but KKR lost to CSK last season. He now has the chance to walk away with a winner’s medal. For RR, Buttler got 39, Jaiswal got 22 but the middle order didn’t turn up. Samson (14), Padikkal (2), Hetmyer (11), and Ashwin (6) couldn’t get going and that could well cost RR the title. This is Hardik’s night. A third wicket for him and he’s broken the back of RR. Hetmyer falls now as he’s caught and bowled. Length ball and outside leg stump, he wanted to defend that one but ended up spooning a catch back to the bowler. RR needs a big finish now BIG WICKET – BUTTLER GONE Hardik Pandya has had Buttler caught behind. Outside off and Buttler wanted to steer it. Reached out and got an edge as he was done by the extra bounce. THREE DOWN Rashid strikes to remove Padikkal now. Length ball and the left-hander made room to cut, gets a thick edge, and is caught at point. GT is staying in this contest and is also ensuring that the pressure is on Buttler to kick on. Hetmyer is out there to up the pace now. GT is attacking both Buttler and Samson with Rashid. Both batters don’t have a favorable matchup against the leg spinner and they are happy to play him out. Remember, in the first Qualifier, Rashid bowled 4-10-15-0. Today, he’s on 2-0-12-0. The pressure mounted and that resulted in the dismissal of Samson. Banged in and Samson wanted to smoke that one. Didn’t connect well and Sai Kishore plucked his second catch of the night. The first wicket of the IPL final and it’s the left-arm pacer that’s given GT the early breakthrough. Banged in and Jaiswal was forced into the pull, didn’t time the ball and got caught at deep square leg. The opener falls after a promising start. STEADY START After just seven were scored in the opening two overs, Jaiswal hit a four and a six in the third over to get RR going. They’ve picked up the pace and are looking to put GT under pressure. Alrighty then, the national anthem is done and the wait is over. Jaiswal and Buttler walk out to bat. Shami will open the attack for the Titans. We are all set. Excited? WHAT’S CHANGED FOR THE GT BATTER? “I had a bad season in 2016, and since then I’ve never really felt backed at all. I had to go back and work on my game, try and find a way to get it going. Although I felt really good playing for South Africa (it was about) finding that gap (in an IPL team). That’s what happened this season. It allows you to not worry about the selection and you can focus on winning games.”