IPL 2022 | GL vs LSG | Superstar of the Match

The two debutants of IPL 2022, Gujarat Titans (GL) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), faced off against each other in Match 4, and the fans were treated to a last-over thriller. The match saw some great performances, but two players stood out with their momentum-changing batting performances. Here are who they were. 

Superstars of the Match 

Ayush Badoni:

On his IPL debut, the 22-year old Ayush Badoni came out to bat when his team was in deep trouble at 29 for the loss of four wickets. The order of the day at this stage was to stay calm, rotate the strike and crawl back into the match. 

In a pressure-cooker like situation, against the likes of in-rhythm Mohammad Shami and Lockie Furguson, the youngster was middling the ball from the very start but couldn’t pierce the gaps. 

However, Badoni kept his calm and played second fiddle to Deepak Hooda at the beginning of the innings. However, once he got an idea of the conditions and the opponent bowlers, he went hard after them and helped his team to a respectable position. 

Badoni flaunted some spellbinding strokes in this knock, including slog sweeps, pull shots, and lofted drives. During the show, he dismantled Ferguson, Rashid Khan and Hardik Pandya. 

Let’s look at how he built his innings:


Fig: Runs per 10 balls


The graph shows that Badoni was looking to rotate the strike and stay calm in the first half of his innings, and after he got settled, he went berserk. Let’s take a look at his strike rates.



Fig: Strike rates per 10 balls

For the first ten balls, Badoni had a strike rate of just 30 which climbed to 80 from balls 11-20. But in the next 10 balls, he got his strike rate jumped up to 240. The level of maturity he showed to fight out when the going was tough and then launching at the bowlers when he got settled, makes him one of our ‘Superstars of the Match’.

Rahul Tewatia:

In the second innings, Gujarat were chasing a target of 159 runs, which appeared to be a moderate one. But they lost wickets and suddenly, it looked like GL were losing the plot. 

Rahul Tewatia walked in to bat with the score reading 78 for 4 in the 12th over. The required run rate at this stage was 10 runs per over. But this did not affect Tewatia. He kept his calm and built his knock slowly. When it was looking like they are leaving too much for the end, Tewatia shifted gears and then pulled off a ‘Tewatia’ (A popular stunt that Sheldon Cottrell could never forget). 

Let us look at his innings progress:


Fig: Runs per 10 balls


The bar graph clarifies that Tewatia kept his cool when it was most needed. He did not get overawed by the situation, trusted his abilities, and took the match deep. The southpaw went behind the spinners (Ravi Bishnoi and Deepak Hooda) to smash them for three boundaries and two maximums before tonking two more fours against Dushmantha Chameera Avesh Khan - all majorly in the on-side. 

Let’s look at his strike rate progress.


Fig: Strike Rate per 10 balls

Rahul Tewatia decided to shift gear when the required run rate was 13.6 runs over. After settling down with a strike rate of just 60 in the first 10 balls, he took it to 260 in the successive 10 balls and changed the course of the game. Being in the ‘Imposter’ category, it was the day he fired and won our ‘Superstar of the Match’ award. 

Discover more
Top Stories
news

ICC Women's CWC 2022 | Australian all-rounder Ellyse Perry ruled out of semi-final due to injury

In a bitter blow to the Australia team, star all-rounder Ellyse Perry has been ruled out of the World Cup semi-final clash against West Indies on Wednesday in Wellington. Australian skipper Meg Lanning confirmed the news during the pre-match press conference. She then revealed that Perry was an observer at Australia's final training morning session on Tuesday at the Basin Reserve. Last week, Perry, who also missed the knockout stages of the 2020 Women's T20 World Cup on home soil due to a hamstring injury, suffered back spasms during Australia's victory over South Africa. Although she didn't get to bat, Australia registered their sixth consecutive win in the tournament. However, the in-form all-rounder received back-to-back 'Player of the Match' awards against New Zealand and West Indies earlier in the tournament. She dismissed West Indies batters Deandra Dottin, Hayley Matthews and Kycia Knight inside the powerplay and returned with magical figures of 3/22. Meanwhile, pace bowling all-rounder Jane Sutherland, who was drafted in place for her senior teammate against Bangladesh, is likely to retain her spot in the playing XI. Lanning told reporters that "She batted a little bit in the nets yesterday and felt okay, but she certainly just wasn't in a position, unfortunately, to be able to perform at the level needed for tomorrow." "Unfortunate for her and the team, obviously a big blow, but we feel like we've got some good depth to be able to cover it and we're going to have to do that tomorrow," the Aussie captain added. Australian all-rounder Perry mentioned that "My back's going pretty well," she said, "Obviously, a couple of days still before the match, so I think we'll still just keep playing that by ear, but [by] bearing in mind that we'll probably need to decide in the next day or so." "At this stage, it's going really well. But obviously just need to make sure that I'm in the best possible spot to be able to contribute if I was to play, so I think we'll do a couple more things at training in the next few days. If I get there, I do. Fingers crossed," she concluded. Australia Women's squad: Meg Lanning (c), Rachael Haynes (vc), Darcie Brown, Nicola Carey, Ashleigh Gardner, Grace Harris, Alyssa Healy, Jess Jonassen, Alana King, Beth Mooney, Tahlia McGrath, Ellyse Perry, Megan Schutt, Annabel Sutherland, Amanda-Jade Wellington.

news

IPL 2022 | Ayush Badoni credits Gautam Gambhir for backing him to play his natural game

The Indian Premier League (IPL) has always been a platform for youngsters to showcase their talent and make it big. The latest addition to this list would be Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) player Ayush Badoni. On Monday, the 22-year-old scored a brilliant fifty on his IPL debut to help his side reach a respectable score against Gujarat Titans. Badoni was quick to thank LSG mentor Gautam Gambhir for always supporting him and backing him to play his natural game. The former Indian great assured the youngster that he would get a longer rope this season. Proper backing can do wonders to a player's confidence, as seen in Badoni's case. The Delhi cricketer finished with 54 runs off 41 balls after a watchful start, with his side reeling at 29/4. The highlight of his innings was how he played some brilliant shots against some of the best bowlers in the world. He pulled a ball for a maximum against Lockie Ferguson, which left everyone in awe. "Gautam bhaiya backed me a lot. He told me to play just my natural game. He told me you won't get the one-odd match, but you will get a proper run. He also told me, 'you don't need to play according to the situation. There are senior players to do that. So you show us your natural game," Badoni stated during the post-match press conference. Earlier, LSG picked Badoni at his base price of INR 20 lakh. In the game against GT, he proved to be a good purchase with his performance with the bat. "My name had been coming for three consecutive years, and I was going unsold every time," he said. Many were surprised to see his promotion ahead of Krunal Pandya, but he justified the management's decision with his gritty knock. "After Lucknow picked me, I had scores of fifty-plus in two trial games. That impressed Gautam bhaiya and the coaches Vijay sir and Andy Flower and hence they were confident of sending me before Krunal Pandya," he concluded. However, Gujarat Titans won the match by five wickets, but Badoni's knock is something every cricket fan will remember. It is just the start of the season, and such a performance will give the youngster a lot of confidence.