Bengaluru, April 24 (IANS) Sai Sudharsan played a calm yet strong innings, leading Gujarat Titans to a solid score of 205/3 against Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 match at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. After scoring 100 off 58 balls, he said his innings was as much about finishing well as about finding form.

“It was always coming. I was touching the ball well in the last few innings and was really grateful to God. Really happy to contribute to the team. I think with the level of communication we understood it was two-paced and sticky, and it was a natural instinct to take the game deeper.”

The left-handed batter had a challenging start as Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Josh Hazlewood found early movement, beating his outside edge and concerning him with bounce. A fortunate edge for four helped him settle in, but once the conditions improved, Sudharsan picked up the pace. He started finding boundaries with accuracy and hit the first six of the innings in the fifth over.

He dominated the powerplay, reaching 41 off 27 balls as GT scored 57/0, before smoothly moving into the middle overs. Combining smart aggression with effective strike rotation, he reached his half-century in 33 balls. Then, he stepped it up further, taking on Romario Shepherd and Krunal Pandya with inventive shots, including a daring uppercut for six.

During this innings, Sudharsan also became the fastest player to reach 2000 IPL runs in just 47 innings, breaking Chris Gayle’s record. “I have high standards for myself… I’ve been starting well but not finishing well, so it was more than just a century for me,” he said, reflecting on his lively celebration after reaching three figures.

Even with this achievement, Sudharsan kept his focus on the bigger goal. “I have such high standards for myself, I want to always put my team in a good position. I’ve been starting well but not finishing well, so it was more than just a century for me. I didn’t try to take too much control of the innings and let go. I let it go really well today. I personally feel it is a really good score for the bowlers. Not so easy to play shots as it’s not so true.”

–IANS

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