Gujarat Titans won the IPL after outclassing Rajasthan Royals in the summit clash© BCCI/IPL
Gujarat Titans emerged as the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 champions in emphatic fashion after defeating Rajasthan Royals in the final on Sunday. GT captain Hardik Pandya returned with figures of 3/17 as RR reached 130/9 in 20 overs. GT, who are one of the two new franchises in the IPL, then reached the target with 11 balls to spare. Hardik Pandya, who also scored 34 runs, was named the ‘Player Of The Match’ for his all-round show. GT thus achieved the rare feat of winning the IPL in their debut season.
After the IPL triumph, Gujarat Titans reacted to a special tweet from UEFA Champions League winners Real Madrid along with the caption “What they said…#CHAMP1ONS”. The numerical 1 indicated GT’s first title.
Spanish football club Real Madrid’s tweet read: “WE DON’T PLAY FINALS WE WIN FINALS. #CHAMP14NS.”
Real Madrid on Saturday won their 14th Champions League title after defeating Liverpool 1-0 in the final.
What they said…#CHAMP1ONS https://t.co/8Y0jFgP0Ed
— Gujarat Titans (@gujarat_titans) May 29, 2022
In the IPL final, Gujarat’s highly-rated bowling attack, led by skipper Hardik Pandya himself, limited a formidable Rajasthan Royals batting unit to a modest total after losing the toss.
Then GT’s Shubman Gill and David Miller remained unbeaten on 45 and 32, respectively, to complete an emphatic win for their team.
It should have been a comfortable chase but Rajasthan bowled their hearts out to make it an interesting final. As they showed all season, Gujarat remained calm in tough situations to finish the chase in 18.1 overs.
Promoted
Not many gave Gujarat a chance in their first season, especially after a mixed auction where they waited till the end to secure the services of wicketkeepers Wriddhiman Saha and Matthew Wade.
It was not a team studded with star players but Hardik impressed with his leadership and got the best out of his teammates.
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