Match 18 of IPL 2023 between PBKS and GT ended with Gujarat winning with 6 wickets. The average-scoring game was filled with tight bowling spells, but one name stood out from the rest.
It was Mohit Sharma, the 2014 Purple Cap winner, who produced a match-winning performance for GT. Mohit’s performance maintained this IPL’s theme of offering a retro twist to the game. With MS Dhoni scoring at a 200+ strike rate and chubby leg spinners taking game-winning wickets, the season has everything.
The trend continued with the 2015 World Cup semi finalist making a much-awaited comeback. Despite being away from international cricket for years, the 34-year-old bowler proved why he won the Purple Cap back in 2014.
Mohit Sharma replaced Yash Dayal for GT, who had recently faced a dramatic experience against KKR. Dayal bowled the final over against Kolkata, where Rinku Singh hit the bowler for five consecutive sixes. Thus, came the right-arm medium pacer, who only conceded 18 runs in 4 overs while taking 2 crucial wickets.
With names like Shubman Gill, Sam Curran, and Rashid Khan in the game, Mohit Sharma stood out the most. The player was not even a part of most fantasy teams on betting sites for cricket simply because he’s been missing for years. Mohit had only played one game each in IPL 2019 and 2020.
However, the way Mohit bowled did not show that the player had been out of touch. The unpredictable pitch of Mohali offered a good batting experience in the early overs. But the ball was being hit so hard that it had changed shape when Mohit came to bowl.
It was the 11th over when Mohit started bowling, and the player completely leveraged the unpredictability. Mohit maintained an awkward length while trying pace variations to unsettle the batting lineup. The strategy yielded amazing results, as PBKS only reached an average score of 153 for 8.
In reply, GT took the game to the final over where the team won with one ball remaining. On the batting end, Shubman Gill produced a gem of a performance, scoring 67 off 49 balls. With the win, GT secured the 3rd position with 6 points in 4 games. On the other hand, PBKS is placed in the 6th position with 4 points in 4 games.
