Hyderabad won the toss and put Gujarat into bat. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (5/30) once again got the early wicket, dismissing Wriddhiman Saha for a duck. However, Gill (101 off 58) and Sai Sudharsan (47 off 36) added 147 runs for the second wicket. Gill struck 13 fours and a six in his brilliant innings, which ended in the last over.

The second-wicket stand ended when Marco Jansen dismissed Sudharsan. Hardik Pandya (8), David Miller (7) and Rahul Tewatia (3) all fell cheaply. Then Bhuvneshwar returned to dismiss Gill, Rashid Khan (0) and Shami in the 20th over as GT fell short of 200.

In the chase, SRH got off to a horror start, losing half their side for 45 by the start of the seventh over. Anmolpreet Singh (5) perished to Shami, while Abhishek Sharma (4) nicked one off Yash Dayal. Rahul Tripathi (1) guided Shami to slip, while Hyderabad skipper Aiden Markram (10) clipped the pacer to cover point.

Mohit sent back Sanvir Singh (7), Abdul Samad (4) and Marco Jansen (3) in quick succession. At 59/7, the game seemed to be heading for an early finish. But Heinrich Klaasen (64 off 44) and Bhuvneshwar (27 off 26) ensured SRH were not bowled out, adding 68 for the eighth-wicket partnership.

Speaking after winning the Player of the Match, Gill said, “I made my IPL debut against SRH and got my first hundred against them, so life has come a full circle. Hopefully, many more to come. It’s all about the bowlers and situation and I don’t dwell much on my last innings. It is important to focus on the situation in front.

He added, “The six off Abhishek Sharma was the most pleasing thing for me. I told him that if you bowl to me I’m going to hit you for a six.”

–By A Cricket Correspondent