Gujarat Titans held on for a gut-wrenching one-run victory over Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) on Wednesday despite a savage late assault from David Miller.
Having been asked to bat, Gujarat piled up a total of 210-4 and had the game virtually in the bag after Delhi’s chase faltered as KL Rahul (92 off 52) exited at one end.
Miller, who had previously retired hurt with a hand injury, came back to turn a canter into a cliff-hanger before Delhi ended up on 209-8, crushingly short.
The turning point came in the last over. Needing two off the last two balls, Miller declined a single from the fifth delivery, sending Kuldeep Yadav back in search of that winning boundary.
Miller then could not reach the last ball, and while the duo took off, wicketkeeper Jos Buttler made a direct hit to catch a diving Kuldeep short.
Miller was 41 not out off 20 as Delhi slumped to their first defeat of the season.
Gujarat had earlier set up their total with three half-centuries.
Captain Shubman Gill, returning from a neck sprain, established the tone with a composed 70. After the early loss of Sai Sudharsan, Buttler (52) and Washington Sundar (55) helped steer the innings with a breezy middle-phase partnership.
Lungi Ngidi pegged Delhi back with a disciplined spell at the end, conceding only 58 runs in the final six overs.
Delhi’s chase came alive through Rahul and Pathum Nissanka (41), who added 76 for the first wicket.
Rahul reached his half-century off 29 balls, including two sixes in a row on Prasidh Krishna.
Gujarat spinner Rashid Khan turned the match in two deliveries as he got rid of Nitish Rana and Sameer Rizvi and later added Axar Patel to his tally.
Delhi’s chances sank further when Miller hobbled off in the 13th over.
Rahul perished in the 17th over to put even more pressure on the batting lineup yet Miller was back to add new life.
He came after Mohammed Siraj, who bled 23 runs in the penultimate over, bringing down the equation to 13 off six.
Miller even backed himself to complete the chase off the last ball but it was not Gujarat’s day as they wrapped up their first win of this season.