IPL 2025: GT skipper Gill explains strategy of using black soil pitch following win over MI

Ahmedabad (Gujarat) [India], March 30 (ANI): Following his side's win over Mumbai Indians (MI), Gujarat Titans (GT) skipper Shubman Gill talked about his team's strategy to use a black soil pitch for the match, saying that batting second on such surfaces once the ball gets old makes it difficult for the batters to clear the boundaries.
Fiery bowling spells by Prasidh Krishna and Mohammed Siraj and a half-century by Sai Sudharsan were the highlights as the Gujarat Titans (GT) defeated the Mumbai Indians (MI) by 36 runs at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday. With this win, GT has added two points to the tally. Also, they continue their impeccable record of 4-0 against MI at Ahmedabad, improving their overall head-to-head record to 4-2.
Speaking after the match in the post-match presentation, Gill said, "The decision was taken before the first match that the second match will be played on black soil. Yes, that was a factor as well, but this wicket suits us. Batting on black soil once the ball gets old, it is difficult to clear the boundary, so we tried to maximize the powerplay. We can all talk about plans, but sometimes it goes your way and it does not. I do not know, maybe this is the first time he did not bowl four overs (spinner Rashid Khan not completing his quota of overs). I actually kept him for the end, but I thought the pacers were bowling well. Prasidh was bowling well, so just wanted to use the pacers."
Coming to the match, MI won the toss and opted to bowl first. GT openers Shubman Gill (38 in 27 balls, with four boundaries and a six) and Sai Sudarshan put the team to a fine start with a 78-run stand. Another half-century stand came between Sudarshan and Jos Buttler (39 in 24 balls, with five fours and a six). Sudarshan played a solid knock of 63 in 41 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes. From 179/4, GT suffered a mini-collapse towards the end as they were restricted to 196/8 in 20 overs.
Skipper Hardik Pandya (2/29) was the pick of the bowlers for MI, while Trent Boult, Deepak Chahar, Mujeeb ur Rahman and Satyanarayana Raju each took a wicket.
In the run chase of 197 runs, MI lost Rohit Sharma (8) and Ryan Rickelton early. However, Tilak Varma (39 in 36 balls, with three fours and a six) and Suryakumar Yadav (48 in 28 balls, with a four and four sixes) tried fighting it out for MI with a 62-run stand. Following their dismissal, MI lost their way and were restricted to 160/6 in 20 overs.
Prasidh Krishna (2/18) and Mohammed Siraj (2/34) were the top bowlers for GT. Kagiso Rabada and Sai Kishore also got a wicket each. (ANI)