IPL 2025: Mitchell Marsh’s century, O’Rourke’s three-fer give LSG 33-run victory win over GT
New Delhi: Opener Mitchell Marsh hit the Lucknow Super Giants’ fastest century in their league history as pacer William O’Rourke picked 3-27, including being hit twice in the 17th over, as the visitors beat top-ranked Gujarat Titans’ by 33 runs at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Thursday.
In response to Marsh’s 64-ball 117, the major inspiration for LSG to achieve a record 235/2, the visitors cut down GT’s in-form top-order three batsmen in the initial ten overs. GT’s middle order was at last pushed hard, and Shahrukh Khan kept them in the game by scoring an 86-run stand off 40 balls for the fourth wicket with Sherfane Rutherford.
But O’Rourke’s two wickets meant GT finished on 202/9, as LSG won both their games against the hosts this season. Banged under pressure to bat first on a black soil surface, Marsh was brutal on the loose deliveries and played some fine power-hitting shots to record his first-ever IPL century, laced with ten fours and eight sixes at a strike-rate of 182.81.
The pick of Marsh’s magnificent knock was his thrashing of 25 runs off Rashid Khan’s over. Aiden Markram also stood him in good stead, making a quick 24-ball 36, while Nicholas Pooran’s promotion to number three saw him making 56 not out off 27 deliveries – full of four fours and five sixes at a strike rate of 207.41.
For GT, it was an evening to forget with the ball as the bowlers were unable to leave an impression on a pitch that was nothing but a batting beauty. Makram and Marsh hit seven boundaries between them in a slow power-play that yielded 53 runs, with the latter being dropped twice. The six-over phase also saw Arshad Khan slipping twice in his delivery stride in his first over, though he became okay to complete his quota of overs.
Marsh then found his rhythm to score six boundaries from overs 7-10 and score his fifty off 34 balls with a straight six off R Sai Kishore. Though Kishore gave GT the start that they needed in the form of Markram’s wicket, Pooran began playing in an attacking mindset by driving him over long-off for six.
As soon as Rashid came back to the attack in the 12th over, Marsh opened his beast mode – cutting, lofting, swiping, and pulling him twice to score 25 runs. Pooran continued to slog spinners for boundaries before he and Marsh creamed 20 runs from Siraj’s final over. The duo took four each from Arshad before Marsh completed his century in 56 balls.
Marsh then struck Krishna for consecutive sixes in the 18th over, and then cut to backward point off Arshad, bringing an end to his 121-run second-wicket stand in 52 balls with Pooran. Pooran then cut Arshad for a six, and then Rishabh Pant cut and punched Rabada for two sixes in the last over, as LSG registered their joint third-highest IPL score. Chasing 236, Shubman Gill and B Sai Sudharsan hit eight fours in the first four overs – five of them with the GT captain’s bat. After Sudharsan cut for a four against O’Rourke, the pacer pitched a fraction fuller and the left-handed opener attempted a drive but was premature to it and was caught by diving mid-off as he completed making a low catch.
Jos Buttler was blazing from the word go – scooping, smacking, lofting, and drilling Avesh Khan for 20 runs in the last over of power-play. Gill continued to be sublime by hitting two fours, before going for a loft off Avesh resulted in the bat slightly rotating in his hand, and sliced to long-off, who put in a sprint and dived to complete a stunning catch.
Akash Singh, who injured his webbing on the right hand attempting to halt a drive off Gill, was rewarded with a slower ball to return and castle Buttler through the gate. The left-arm pacer honored Digvesh Rathi, who was not playing this match after being given his third demerit point, by performing the notebook celebration and pointing towards the dressing room, as GT lost their first three batsmen before the halfway mark.
With 139 runs wanting off the final ten overs, Shahrukh and Rutherford came through to keep GT in the game. They struck flashy boundaries early before scoring 17 and 19 runs off Avesh and Shahbaz Ahamad off overs 14 and 15 respectively, and then struck Akash Deep for 17 runs from the 16th over.
With 54 runs needed from the remaining four overs, Rutherford attempted a lofted flick off O’Rourke but was too early with the shot, and replacement fielder Ravi Bishnoi came in from deep midwicket to take the catch.
O’Rourke then hit again in the same over when Rahul Tewatia holed out to long-off, before Shahbaz disposed of Arshad Khan cutting to point. Following Avesh having Shahrukh, who had completed his fifty in 22 balls, caught at cover off a dipping full toss, the game was well and truly won for LSG.
Brief scores: Lucknow Super Giants 235/2 in 20 overs (Mitchell Marsh 117, Nicholas Pooran 56 not out; R Sai Kishore 1-34, Arshad Khan 1-36) beat Gujarat Titans 202/9 in 20 overs (Shahrukh Khan 57, Sherfane Rutherford 38; William O’Rourke 3-27, Ayush Badoni 2-4) by 33 runs
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