Images from the IPL 2025 match between Gujarat Titans and Chennai Super Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Gujarat Titans' hopes of a top-two finish in IPL 2025 suffered a massive dent when they went down by 83 runs to Chennai Super Kings, who were powered by fifty-makers Devon Conway and Dewald Brevis, in Ahmedabad on Sunday.
Gujarat Titans finish on 18 points from 14 league matches and are still on top of the table but their net run rate took a steep nose dive after this big defeat.
To maintain their position inside the top two, GT now require Royal Challengers Bengaluru (17 points) to lose to Lucknow Super Giants in their final league match.
It's important because either Mumbai Indians (16) or Punjab Kings (17 points) will overtake GT with a win from their face-off on Monday.
Cutting back to the match, once asked to chase a stiff 231, the Titans floundered badly losing in-form skipper Shubman Gill, Jos Buttler and Sherfane Rutherford in the Powerplay with just 35 runs on the board.
Titans were bowled out for 147 in 18.3 overs.
Pacer Anshul Kamboj did the early damage, claiming the wickets of Gill and Rutherford. He finished with wonderful figures of 3/13, while Noor Ahmad bagged 3/21 and Ravindra Jadeja took 2/17 in a clinical bowling performance by CSK.
Sai Sudharsan (41 from 28 balls), the latest entrant into the India Test squad, and his Tamil Nadu team-mate M Shahrukh Khan (19) added 55 runs for the fourth wicket to infuse some interest into the chase.
But left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja returned for his second spell to dismiss both Sudharsan and Shahrukh in the space of four balls in the 11th over, and the match effectively ended at that point.
CSK finished their IPL 2025 engagements at the bottom of the pile with eight points from 14 matches, the five-time champions' worst ever finish in the 10-team league.
Earlier, seasoned Conway and promising Brevis produced fifties of contrasting character, laying the foundation for Chennai Super Kings' healthy 230/5.
Conway and Brevis led the charge with a 52 off 35 balls, and a 23-ball 57 on a flat pitch at the Narendra Modi Stadium.
But Conway's knock was put to shade a bit by cameos by Ayush Mhatre (34 from 17 balls) and Urvil Patel (37 from 19 balls), who made runs at a respective strike rate of 200 and 194 ensured runs came at a fast clip for CSK.
The Chennai outfit raced out of the paddock, making 44 in just 3.4 overs, made possible by Mhatre's brutal assault on pacer Arshad Khan.
Mhatre carved Arshad for 2, 6, 6, 4, 4, 6 in the second over to milk 28 runs and Chennai rarely let that momentum slip.
Mhatre, who was recently appointed as the India U-19 skipper, soon fell to Prasidh Krishna, skying him to Mohammed Siraj in the deep.
But Urvil continued the aggressive ways, while adding 63 runs for the second wicket with Conway.
The highlight of his innings was a pick-up shot he played against veteran spinner Rashid Khan that sailed over his head for a six.
It's one thing to play that shot against pacers, but to impart timing and power to it against a spinner is totally another thing.
However, Urvil perished to left-arm spinner Sai Kishore immediately after hammering for a six.
On the other hand, Conway showed a rare moment of aggression launching Rashid for a six over long-on but was clean bowled.
But Brevis, who smashed India pacer Siraj for 6, 6, 4, justified his 腺aby ABD' tag to perfection, smashing GT bowlers all around the park.
The South African played a belligerent knock of his own to raise 74 runs for the entertaining fifth wicket alliance with Ravindra Jadeja in which the latter contributed just 21 off 18 balls.
It was the CSK's young batters' final innings of this IPL, and it might have given a note of optimism for the management too for the next season.
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