Kusal Mendis’ maiden IPL outing was shaping up to be a memorable one—until an unfortunate hit-wicket dismissal cut his knock short in the IPL 2025 Eliminator between Gujarat Titans and Mumbai Indians in Mullanpur. Mendis, who wasn’t part of the Gujarat Titans’ original roster, was roped in as a replacement for Jos Buttler, who departed before the playoffs due to national duties.
The Sri Lankan wicketkeeper-batter had entered the IPL auction multiple times over the years but went unsold each time—until this month, when he finally earned his long-awaited debut IPL contract.
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Despite having other wicketkeeping options like Anuj Rawat and Kumar Kushagra, the Titans chose to hand Mendis his IPL debut in this high-pressure Eliminator. With Shubman Gill falling to Trent Boult for just 1 in the first over, Mendis was thrown into the deep end. However, he responded with confidence and flair, racing to 20 off just 9 balls, including two towering sixes and a crisp four.
What happened there? 🤔
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Just as he looked set for a match-defining innings, disaster struck in the seventh over. Facing Mitchell Santner, Mendis went for a pull shot and lost balance. As he stepped too far back in his crease, his trailing leg disturbed the stumps, resulting in a rare and unfortunate hit-wicket dismissal. To add to the drama, Mendis fell flat on his back after dislodging the bails.
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At the time of writing, Gujarat Titans were fighting hard in their 229-run chase, positioned at 119/2 in the 11th over. Sai Sudharsan was leading the charge with a fluent 60*, while Washington Sundar was on 11*.
Earlier, Mumbai Indians put up a formidable total of 228/5, powered by Rohit Sharma’s blistering 81. The winner of this clash will advance to Qualifier 2, where Punjab Kings await.
