Kagiso Rabada stars as Punjab Kings end Gujarat Titans’ winning run

Navi Mumbai, May 3

Shikhar Dhawan struck a fine half-century as error-prone Punjab Kings finally produced a clinical performance to beat Gujarat Titans by eight wickets and end the IPL table-toppers’ five-match winning streak here today.

IPL final confirmed in Ahmedabad

New Delhi: The IPL final will be played in Ahmedabad on May 29 while the Women’s T20 Challenge exhibition event will be held in Pune from May 23-May 28, the BCCI confirmed today. As PTI reported last month, the IPL Qualifier 1 and Eliminator will be held in Kolkata on May 24 and 25, respectively, while Qualifier 2 and final will be played in Ahmedabad on May 27 and May 29 in front of capacity crowd. Meanhwhile, the Women’s T20 Challenge was to be held in Lucknow but it has been moved to Pune. Three matches will be played before the final on May 28. PTI

Pacer Kagiso Rabada snared four wickets as Punjab Kings restricted Gujarat Titans to a below-par 143/8 after Hardik Pandya opted to bat first.

Punjab, who made a mess of what should have been a straightforward chase in their last game, learned from their mistakes to pace the innings and overcame the target in 16 overs.

Dhawan (62 not out off 53 balls) scored his third 50 of the season and got good support from Sri Lankan Bhanuka Rajapaksa (40 off 28), who entertained with five fours and a six.

As one of the senior batters in the team, Dhawan took the responsibility of finishing the game.

Skipper Mayank Agarwal dropped himself down the order to accommodate Jonny Bairstow (1) at the top of the order but the move did not work.

However, the 87-run stand between the left-handers ensured Punjab got home comfortably.

Liam Livingstone (30 not out off 10) displayed some brutal hitting towards the end of the chase and smashed Mohammad Shami for four sixes, including a monstrous 117m hit over deep square leg. The 16th over going for 30 runs also gave a big boost to Punjab’s net-run rate.

It was a much-needed win for Punjab, who have struggled for consistency this season with five wins and as many losses.

For Gujarat, who are set to make the playoffs, it was a timely wake-up call to fix their batting issues, especially at the top of the order.

Brief scores: GT: 143/8 in 20 overs (Sudharsan 64*; Rabada 4/33); PBKS: 145/2 in 16 overs (Dhawan 62*, Livingstone 30*)