OPENER Sai Sudharasan hit 82 as Gujarat Titans thrashed Rajasthan Royals by 58 runs to go top of the Indian Premier League.
The 23-year-old hit eight fours and three sixes from 53 balls, passing 50 for the third match in a row, before he was caught behind off the bowling of Tushar Deshpande in the penultimate over of his side’s innings.

Chasing 218, the Royals slipped to 68-4 in their reply, and while Sanju Samson (41 from 28) and Shimron Hetmyer (52 from 32) offered the visitors some hope, they were ultimately bowled out for 159 in Ahmedabad.
Having been put into bat the Titans lost Shubman Gill in the third over, bowled by England’s Jofra Archer for two, but Sudharasan was joined by Jos Buttler (36 from 25) and the pair put on 80 for the second wicket.

Sudharasan, who is now the tournament’s second leading run-scorer, was one of two wickets to fall in Deshpande’s 19th over, but finisher Rahul Tewatia closed with an unbeaten 24 from 12 as the home side concluded their innings on 217-6.
Having seen his side lose four early wickets, Royals’ captain and opener Samson added 48 with Hetmyer before he was caught at short third off Kulwant Khejroliya.

The visitors’ hopes then lay with Hetmyer, and the West Indies batter struck four fours and three sixes before he was caught by Sai Kishore at deep backward square off Prasidh Krishna (3-24).
The wicket effectively ended the match as a contest, leaving the Royals 145-8 in the 16th over, and Sudharasan got to finish the match off himself, catching Maheesh Theekshana at long-off as the Titans bowled their opposition out for 159 with four balls to spare.

The win sees the Titans leapfrog Delhi Capitals to lead the table by two points, while the Royals remain in seventh with two wins and three losses.(BBC Sport.)