Sai Sudharsan. (Photo by AFP) Former India off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin praised Sai Sudharsan for his impressive knock against Gujarat Titans, highlighting the youngster’s clarity and understanding of his game despite the team’s narrow loss against Rajasthan Royals.Sudharsan played a fluent innings of 73 off 44 balls in the absence of regular skipper Shubman Gill, but Gujarat Titans fell short of a high score at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Saturday. Ashwin appreciated Sudharsan’s approach and noted how he adapted to the responsibility.
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Shashank Singh on Punjab’s strong start, Priyansh’s growth and team mentality | IPL 2026 “Sai Sudharsan knew Shubman wasn’t playing today so he had to do it himself. The way he started showed he understood his strengths. He used the pace well, guided the ball to third man and then played some good cover drives on the front foot. Right after he came into the attack, he took on Jadeja, used the pace and followed up with Jijo Ashstar,” he lamented.Gill missed the GT game against RR due to muscle spasm and Rashid Khan led the side in his absence. Ashiwn feels that when Gill returns, his opening combination with Sudharsan will be the key for GT going forward.“These are strong areas for Sudharsan, which he relies on and he has delivered results. He needs to play like that, carry the innings but at good pace. And for Gujarat Titans, missing Shubman Gill has been a big setback. So obviously when Shubman comes back, that opening combination will be key for them again,” he added.
RR hold your nerve in the high score clash
Continuing their strong start to the season, Rajasthan Royals registered their second straight win and climbed to the top of the points table with a healthy clean sheet pace. Defending a formidable 210, Rajasthan were pushed to the brink by a late Gujarat attack, with Rashid Khan and Kagiso Rabada threatening a dramatic finish.Captain Riyan Parag revealed that the plan at the death was to attack the stumps with pace and deny the batsmen space to free their arms. He admitted that a change in the bowling order was briefly considered, but credited Dhruv Jurel for suggesting that Jofra Archer bowl second last.That decision proved crucial as Archer produced a tight 19th over and used his pace and experience to keep Gujarat in check. Tushar Deshpande then held his nerve in the final over and successfully defended for 10 runs to seal the victory.
