Following a close loss against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Gujarat Titans welcomed their regular skipper Hardik Pandya into the playing XI for the clash against Punjab Kings (PBKS) at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali on Thursday, April 13. The star Indian all-rounder was seen sharing an endearing moment with his opposite number at the toss as he greeted Shikhar Dhawan with a kiss on his cheek.
Hardik Pandya, who missed the thrilling encounter against KKR, returned to lead the side against Shikhar Dhawan and his men in Mohali. Dhawan, who is the leading run-scorer of IPL 2023, was embraced in a hug by Hardik and also received a peck on his cheek during the toss.
Kiss Kiss se tum bhagoge! 😍#PBKSvGT #JazbaHaiPunjabi #SaddaPunjab #TATAIPL pic.twitter.com/LoMf7xiAYD
— Punjab Kings (@PunjabKingsIPL) April 13, 2023
The defending champions won the toss and decided to bowl first on a seemingly flat track in Mohali. Pandya’s decision proved to be a masterstroke as veteran Indian pacer Mohammed Shami struck with just his second delivery of the match, dismissing Prabhsimran Singh for a second successive duck in IPL 2023. Things went from bad to worse for the home side as skipper Shikhar Dhawan, who played an excellent knock in the last game, was dismissed cheaply in the powerplay.
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Matthew Short, playing just his second IPL game, led the fightback for the home side after scoring a brisk 36 off 24 deliveries. However, Gujarat’s Rashid Khan cleaned him up with a beautiful delivery to dent Punab’s hopes of a big total. Short’s departure was followed by a series of quiet overs as Bhanuka Rajapaksa and Sam Curran struggled to get going in the middle overs.
Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Prabhsimran Singh, Shikhar Dhawan (c), Matthew Short, Bhanuka Rajapaksa, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Sam Curran, Shahrukh Khan, Harpreet Brar, Kagiso Rabada, Rishi Dhawan, Arshdeep Singh
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Gujarat Titans (Playing XI): Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Shubman Gill, Sai Sudharsan, Hardik Pandya (c), David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Rashid Khan, Alzarri Joseph, Mohammed Shami, Mohit Sharma, Joshua Little
