It is almost routine for captains to go the other way to what their opposite number says at the toss. There isn't much to read into it, but why concede even half an inch to the opposition? But there was an air of confidence and honesty when Shubman Gill said "we would have bowled" after Pat Cummins chose to bat in Ahmedabad.
The assuredness in Gill's voice suggested a plan was in play, and Gujarat Titans fielding first in the first day game in Ahmedabad was a part of it.
With the temperatures touching 37°C, the Titans think tank banked on the surface getting slower with the sun baking down. As a result, they dropped their most economical bowler from the previous game, Spencer Johnson, and brought in spinner Noor Ahmad.
But making plans is one thing and executing them an entirely different ball game, especially against the mighty Sunrisers Hyderabad batting.
SRH had been the best batting side of IPL 2024 so far. They almost chased down 209 in their opening game and then hammered 277 for 3 against Mumbai Indians, the highest score in the history of the IPL. So captain Cummins went with the stronger suit first up.
It was a plan that worked for the best part. SRH raced to 56 for 1 in the powerplay. Travis Head, back where he had led the way in Australia winning the ODI World Cup not too long ago, swung big. Abhishek Sharma, fresh from scoring the quickest fifty by an SRH batter, took on Rashid Khan, smashing him for two successive sixes. It looked like 200 again. Hang on, Gill said. And he knew what he was talking about.
Once the ball lost some of its shine and got softer, the Titans bowlers came into their own, first via their two Afghanistan spinners, Rashid and Noor, and then Mohit Sharma.
Noor was introduced after the powerplay and found immediate success when he flummoxed Head with a sharp googly. Mohit then deceived Abhishek with a slower offcutter, the mistimed on-the-up drive only going as far as extra cover. SRH, who were speeding along at 9.33 after six overs, slid to 7.40 after ten.
"In this heat, wherever we have played the day matches, we have seen it is easier to score with the new ball but not once the ball gets old," Gill said on the official broadcast after the match. "And the wickets get a bit slow, it is difficult to hit those sixes on the longer side, and that was our plan to be able to let them hit the slower ones to the longer side."
But SRH are not a team to get bogged down, not with Heinrich Klaasen waiting to walk out. With scores of 63 (29) and 80* (34) behind him, Klaasen came in and creamed Noor for a four and two sixes and was 21 off nine in no time.
Enter Rashid.
He has not had the best of times in 2024, having undergone lower-back surgery and spent close to four months without any cricket. Rashid started IPL 2024 well, going for just 23 runs in the first game against Mumbai Indians, but was taken for 49 by CSK even though he picked up two wickets.
Against SRH, too, his first over went for 15. Despite this, he remained a crucial arrow in Gill's quiver, and his four balls to Klaasen proved why. He kept the trajectory flat with his first three deliveries and on a good length to Klaasen with the batter staying back. Then, off the fourth ball, Rashid went just a touch fuller, flatter, and on the stumps at 99.2kph. Klaasen, on the back foot, attempted the cross-batted heave, only to be beaten and find his leg stump flattened.
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It was Rashid's bouncebackability on show again. Having gone for 15 off his first six balls, he conceded just 18 off his next three overs, while also picking up the most important wicket in the opposition camp. With Klaasen's wicket, Rashid became Titans' highest wicket-taker in the IPL, going past Mohammed Shami's tally of 48.
Having stemmed the flow of runs, it was important Titans ended on a high and Mohit ensured that, mixing his pace and lengths, not giving the batters much to work with. Thirteen of the 24 balls he bowled were cutters, and he varied his lengths neatly too. He finished with 3 for 25 off his four overs and picked up the Player-of-the-Match award.
"The way our bowlers bowled in the middle overs, especially Noor, obviously Rashid bhai is a world-class bowler. He is always coming in and giving his best," Gill said. "He [Mohit] is such an experienced player, especially on wickets like these. He comes in day in and day out, he practices his skills, and he is so skilful. It is not easy in this heat to bowl four overs back-to-back, but he comes in and bowls those yorkers, slower ones, and mixes them up so well."
Titans understood the pitch and exploited the conditions, with both their selection and execution. They did a lot of things right but for the match to go their way, they had to have their main man Rashid take control. He did that and was effectively backed by Noor and Mohit as Titans coasted home.