"If we had fielded better, conceded fewer runs, or scored 10–15 more, the match could have been more evenly poised and the pressure could have been on the opposition," pacer Mukesh Kumar analyzed as Delhi Capitals went down to Gujarat Titans in a top-of-the-table clash in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Asked to bat first by local team captain Shubman Gill, Delhi Capitals posted 203/8 in 20 overs, courtesy of contributions from skipper Axar Patel (39 off 32), Ashutosh Sharma (37 off 19), and Karun Nair (31 off 18). Some of the visitors' batters got starts but could not capitalize and make a big score.
Chasing a target of 204, Gujarat Titans rode a brilliant unbeaten 97 off 54 balls by English batsman Jos Buttler and 41 off 34 by West Indian Sherfane Rutherford to reach 204/3 in 19.2 overs and won the match by seven wickets.
Buttler's brilliant knock came in very tough conditions with the temperature touching 41 degrees and even a seasoned player like Ishant Sharma finding it difficult to stay on the field.
With this win, Gujarat Titans moved to 10 points from five wins and two defeats, the same as Delhi Capitals who slipped to the second spot in the points table on net run rate.
Gujarat Titans captain Shubman Gill praised his team for fighting back in the death overs with the ball and preventing DC from setting up a target around 220-230.
Gill said the Critical moment of the match was when they managed to pull things back with the ball.
The way we pulled the game back...at one point it looked like their total would be 220-230 but credit to the bowlers for pulling it back. Even in the first game, chasing around 245 we were right in the game and lost by around 10 runs. We've been chasing well.
Gill said
The other major thing that powered Gujarat Titans to victory was Jos Buttler's innings and his 119-run Jos Buttler and Rutherford's 119-run partnership, which is GT's highest for the third wicket in IPL, breaking the record of 90 between Washington Sundar and Shubman Gill.
Buttler braved cramps in the scorching conditions to guide the Titans to victory.
Really pleased with the two points and winning the game. It was a beautiful wicket to bat on. Just wanted to bat deep and pick my moments to attack. I think it takes you by surprise how draining the heat is. I certainly felt that while batting, cramping up and stuff. But that's part of the game to be fit and be able to perform under pressure in the heat.
Buttler said
Gill too gave credit to Buttler and his partnership for paving the way to victory. "Magnificent the way Sherfane and Buttler rotated the strike and those hits were tremendous. Their partnership wasn't just brutal hitting, it was very calculated batting. The way they rotated strike and picked their bowlers was excellent," he added.
Gujarat Titans will next travel to Kolkata for a clash with Kolkata Knight Riders on Monday (April 21) at the Eden Gardens while Delhi Capitals will take on Lucknow Super Giants in their eighth match of IPL 2025 at Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Tuesday (April 22).
Brief Scores: Delhi Capitals 203/8 in 20 overs (Axar Patel 39, Ashutosh Sharma 37; Prasidh Krishna 4-41, Ishant Sharma 1-19) lost to Gujarat Titans 204/3 in 19.2 overs (Jos Buttler 97*, Sherfane Rutherford 43, Sai Sudharsan 36; Kuldeep Yadav 1-30, Mukesh Kumar 1-40) by seven wickets.