IPL 2022, top performers of the week: Hardik Pandya, KL Rahul, Umran Malik set stage on fire

The third week of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 has just concluded and we have seen some riveting performances so far. Newly inducted Gujarat Titans’ skipper Hardik Pandya had been on song in the last week; David Miller anchored them to a phenomenal win on Sunday. Let’s take a look at top five performers from this week. Hardik Pandya [caption id=“attachment_10559161” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Hardik Pandya scored 87 not out off 52 balls against Rajasthan Royals in the IPL. Image: Sportzpics[/caption] The Gujarat Titans captain Hardik Pandya had been making valuable contributions for his side especially with the bat but the last one week was a brilliant one for the right-hander. Pandya notched a couple of unbeaten fifties on the trot. He first scored 50* off 42 against Sunrisers Hyderabad and then followed it with an unbeaten 87 in just 52 deliveries against Rajasthan Royals. The Titans scored 162/7 against SRH but lost after the Hyderabad chased down the target with five balls to spare. Pandya returned with figures of 1/27 in four overs. But his efforts against the Royals were pretty fruitful as Gujarat beat Rajasthan by 37 runs. Riding on Pandya’s valiant effort with the bat, Gujarat posted 192/4 and then restricted Royals to 155/9. Pandya scalped a wicket for 18 runs in 2.3 overs. KL Rahul [caption id=“attachment_10565671” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  KL Rahul scored a century against Mumbai Indians to take them to victory. Image: Sportzpics[/caption] Opener KL Rahul is leading Lucknow Super Giants who are one of the two new teams in the competition. The right-hander scored a half-century and a 40, he also had a couple of noughts to his name as well. Fans were waiting for Rahul to unveil a knock of his caliber and he didn’t disappoint. KL took on the Mumbai Indians bowling attack during the clash at Brabourne Stadium and notched up a century to help his side post 199/4 in 20 overs. Rahul and his opening partner Quinton de Kock started well with a 52-run stand for the first wicket before the South African departed for 24 runs. The captain was then joined by Manish Pandey and the two once again began to dominate the MI bowlers. The duo put up a partnership of 72 runs for the second wicket before Pandey was sent back for 38 off 29. Rahul then took the onus on himself and scored majority of runs to eventually return unbeaten at 103 off 60 balls. His innings included five maximums and nine fours. Umran Malik [caption id=“attachment_10567571” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  SRH’s Umran Malik picked up four wickets against Punjab Kings. Image: Sportzpics[/caption] The Sunrisers Hyderabad pacer Umran Malik was already getting noticed for his express pace but the fast bowler produced a brilliant spell against Punjab Kings in Mumbai on Sunday. Malik bagged a four-wicket haul against Punjab, out of which three came in the final over as he eventually ended up with figures of 4/28 in 4 overs. SRH bowled out Punjab Kings for 151, courtesy a four wicket haul from Malik and three for Bhuvneshwar Kumar and then chased down the target by 7 wickets to seal their fourth win. The right-arm bowler had also returned with a decent performance earlier in the week as well against Kolkata Knight Riders after he picked up a couple of wickets for 27 runs in 4 overs. His scalps included the prized wicket of KKR skipper Shreyas Iyer whom he cleaned up with a perfect yorker . David Miller [caption id=“attachment_10566891” align=“alignnone” width=“640”]  Gujarat, one of the two new franchises in the expanded 10-team IPL, consolidated their position at the top with five wins from six matches. Image: Sportzpics[/caption] Gujarat Titans batter David Miller unleashed a spectacular performance with the bat against Chennai Super Kings to help his side clinch a win by three wickets while chasing a target of 170 in Pune. The Titans were in trouble at 87/5 before Miller and stand-in skipper Rashid Khan stitched a partnership of 70 runs for the sixth wicket. Rashid took on the bowlers and hammered a 21-ball 40 which included three maximums and a couple of fours while Miller held the other end and chipped in with an unbeaten 94 off 51 deliveries. His knock included six sixes and eight fours as the Titans went over the line in the final over. Miller also made an important contribution in the clash against Rajasthan Royals where he struck a quick-fire 31* off 14. Gujarat had posted 192/4 in 20 overs and later restricted RR to 155/9 to win the match by 37 runs. Maheesh Theekshana Chennai Super Kings might have the most forgettable run in the season but spinner Maheesh Theekshana is one of the players who has given the fans something to cheer about in the last week. The right-arm bowler has been among the wickets as he first bagged a four-wicket haul against the Royal Challengers Bangalore and then followed it up with a couple of wickets against the Titans. Theekshana’s wickets tally against RCB included Faf du Plessis, Anuj Rawat, Shahbaz Ahmed and Suyash Prabhudessai as Bangalore were restricted to 193/9 while chasing 217. The spinner eventually returned with figures of 4/33. He later continued his form against the Titans and picked up two wickets. But Theekshana’s efforts couldn’t really help his side as Gujarat Titans rode on some fine batting from Miller and Rashid to clinch victory. 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