 "RCB vs GT: Mohammed Siraj sizzles on emotional Chinnaswamy return as Gujarat crush hosts")
After starting their season with a couple of dominant victories on the road, the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) suffered their first setback of the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL), getting outplayed by Gujarat Titans in their first home game of the season.
After turning a chase of 175 against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the tournament opener into a cakewalk and posting 196 at Chepauk where home team Chennai Super Kings couldn’t cross 150, RCB posted 169/8 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Wednesday.
RCB had fallen a long way short of the par score at the Chinnaswamy, a venue where even a score of 200 can be tricky to defend. And the manner in which GT chased the target down with eight wickets and more than two overs to spare thanks to Jos Buttler’s unbeaten 73 off 39 deliveries proved exactly that.
The job for Buttler and the rest of the Titans top-four, however, was made a lot easier by their colleagues in the bowling department, who produced a clinical effort despite star leg-spinner Rashid Khan getting smashed for 54 runs in his four overs.
And it was ultimately an ex-Royal Challenger who was RCB’s wrecker-in-chief on the day, with pacer Mohammed Siraj's outstanding figures of 4-0-19-3 playing a key role in helping the Shubman Gill-led side collect their second victory in as many matches.
Siraj lays the foundation for GT’s triumph with his powerplay spell
Returning to the venue that he had called home for seven IPL seasons, Siraj made an instant impact after nearly getting rid of explosive opener Phil Salt twice in the first over, with a top-edge landing safely beyond the midwicket fielder’s reach in the first delivery and wicketkeeper Jos Buttler dropping a regulation catch four balls later.
Left-arm pacer Arshad Khan would then draw first blood by getting the prized wicket of Virat Kohli, who holed out to the man at deep backward square leg while looking for his first maximum. Four deliveries after Padikkal’s dismissal, Siraj opened his account with a sharp inswinger that beat new batter Devdutt Padikkal’s defence and rattled the off-pole.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsThe Titans were off to an ideal start in their first away game of the season. However, Salt’s presence remained a worry for Gill and his men, for the English keeper-batter could easily have undone all the hard work in the first three overs if he was allowed to settle.
In addition to the reprieves in the first over, Salt escaped a clear run-out chance at the non-striker’s end at the start of the fifth over after responding to skipper Rajat Patidar’s call for a risky single. Two balls later, he would smash the ball out of the stadium with a majestic pull after getting a short delivery from Siraj.
The Hyderabadi pacer, however, had the last laugh in the mini-battle as he uprooted the off stump with a searing 144 kmph full delivery that angled away a bit and beat the Englishman’s bat entirely.
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Had Salt stayed on and hit another six or two in the subsequent over, the final one of the powerplay, it could have signalled a shift in momentum and suddenly put the Titans under a bit of pressure. And a well-set Salt at the Chinnaswamy certainly isn’t a pleasant thought for opposition bowlers.
Siraj was given a breather after a three-over spell in the powerplay, in which he collected two wickets for 15 runs. He wouldn’t return until the penultimate over, in which he conceded just four runs and got the set Liam Livingstone caught-behind for 54 to sign off with figures of 3/19.
It was his three-over burst in the powerplay though that played a major role in GT’s victory on Wednesday. With just 38 runs during the fielding restrictions, the home team’s hopes of posting a total in excess of 200 were nearly over. They wouldn’t have crossed 180 even if they scored at 10-an-over in the remainder of their innings.
“I was a bit emotional. I was here for seven years, changed jersery from red to blue and was emotional but once I got the ball I was fine,” Siraj said during the post-match presentation ceremony at his former home ground.
“I had been playing consistently, but during the break I corrected my mistakes and worked on my fitness. Once I was picked up by Gujarat Titans, I spoke to Ashish Bhai. He (Nehra) tells me to go enjoy your bowling and Ishu (Ishant) Bhai tells me what line and length to bowl. My mindset is to have belief and then the pitch does not matter,” added the pacer, who was adjudged the Player of the Match.
The Titans seized the advantage early in the contest, and all they had to do was not make a mess of it in the remainder of the game. And by collecting wickets at regular intervals, GT were able to restrict their opponents to a score under 170.
They needed just one big knock or a major partnership in their chase for them to cruise to victory and Buttler delivered on that front with a knock that should answer the questions his critics had been asking during his poor run with England since October.
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