Bengaluru, April 3 New Zealand great Kane Williamson hailed Mohammad Siraj’s outstanding bowling performance against his former franchise Royal Challengers Bengaluru and said the right-armer bowled with real fire in his belly" and led Gujarat Titans' attack with aggression in securing the eight-wicket win at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Siraj delivered an exceptional spell of 3-19. The effect of his early burst, later fetching him the Player of the Match Award, was such that RCB were reduced to 42-4 before posting 169/8 in their 20 overs at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
"Siraj is obviously familiar with the conditions at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. He bowled with real fire in his belly, led the attack with aggression, and bowled with some excellent pace. He was deservedly named Player of the Match. While Jos Buttler was outstanding and back to his best in the second innings, Siraj set the tone early on, making a significant impact for GT," Williamson said on JioHotstar.
In the chase of 170, captain Shubman Gill (14) and Sai Sudharsan (49) got GT off to a quick start. Later, wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler played a dazzling knock at the other end, clobbering Livingstone for a six to notch up his fifty off 31 balls.
Meanwhile, Rutherford contributed with an eye-catching cameo of an 18-ball 30 while Buttler remained unbeaten on 73 to help chase down the target in just 17.5 overs to guide GT to their second straight victory in IPL 2025.
"There’s always something refreshing about joining a new team, and that’s what Jos Buttler got here at Gujarat Titans. It’s a great environment. What I’m really enjoying about Jos at the moment is that, while many big hitters in other teams are looking to hit every ball for six, he remains totally committed to and trusting of his game plan.
"Over the last eight years, he has consistently been one of the top batters and a match-winner in world cricket. We saw that again this evening, and it bodes really well for GT going forward in the tournament," Williamson added.
With four points from three matches, GT are currently placed fourth in the standings. They will now look to keep the winning momentum against the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Sunday.
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