On Friday, May 12th, the Gujarat Titans faced off against the Mumbai Indians in the 57th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at Mumbai’s Wankhede Stadium. The toss favored Gujarat Titans, who elected to bowl first, but Mumbai Indians’ top order put on a dominant display, with Suryakumar Yadav scoring a breathtaking century off just 49 balls, including 11 fours and 6 sixes.
Rashid Khan, Gujarat Titans’ premier leg-spinner and deputy to Hardik Pandya, was the star performer for his side, bagging a brilliant 4-wicket haul in his 4-over quota and dismissing Ishan Kishan, Rohit Sharma, Nehal Wadhera, and Tim David.
In response, Gujarat Titans began chasing a challenging 219-run target, losing wickets at regular intervals. However, Rashid Khan played a blinder and scored an unbeaten 79 runs off 32 balls, which included 10 sixes and 3 fours. His sensational batting helped the defending champions avoid a humiliating defeat as they posted 191/8 in the 20 overs and lost by 27 runs.
Rashid Khan’s incredible performance broke several records, making him a standout player of the match. His half-century off 21 balls in the match was the joint-second fastest for Gujarat Titans in the IPL, with 10 sixes being the highest by a Gujarat Titans batter in an innings. Moreover, his knock of 79* is the best score by a No.8 batter in IPL history, and overall, it is the third-best in T20 cricket.
Rashid Khan was also the only player to score 75+ runs and take 4+ wickets in the same match, becoming the third player in the history of the IPL to achieve this feat. Furthermore, he became the only fourth batter to hit a half-century from No.8 or below in IPL history, and his 88-run partnership with Alzarri Joseph is the second-best partnership for the 9th wicket in the history of Men’s T20 cricket.