Gujarat Titans went through torrid times in Qualifier 1 as Royal Challengers Bengaluru outclassed them by 92 runs in a one-sided clash on Tuesday at HPCA Stadium. In the wake of the heavy defeat, skipper Shubman Gill admitted that his team’s fielding performance remained far below expectations that played a major role in the result. GT, after winning the toss and choosing to bowl, had the perfect opportunity to put pressure on RCB early on.
However, sloppy work in the field allowed RCB batters to settle and guide the side to a big total. GT also dropped a few catches and failed to capitalise on a run-out opportunity. One of the shocking moments came in the 14th over when Kagiso Rabada failed to hold onto a chance offered by Rajat Patidar. At that stage, Patidar was on 21 runs from 13 deliveries but after that dropped chance Patidar went on to blast 93 off 33 unbeaten to guide the side to 254/5 in 20 overs.
"I think we were going pretty well up until the 12th, 13th over, you know. And I don't think our fielding was at par, dropping a couple of catches, and then our ground fielding was not up to the mark," Gill said after the match.
In reply, GT's chase never got going. Their top order collapsed under pressure as wickets fell quickly inside the powerplay. Their middle order also failed to provide resistance, and lower down the order, a gutsy knock of 68 from Rahul Tewatia did not play any key role as the side was bundled out for 162 in 19.3 overs.
“I don’t think it was our day; the intensity was right there, but under pressure situations, we were not up to the mark. If you get a good powerplay and on a ground like this, you know, we know the ball travels and the outfield is also very quick… So, if you would have gotten off to a good start in the powerplay, you know, any target with the kind of way the wicket was playing and the kind of ground that we were playing at, it could have been chaseable," Gill said.