Rohit Sharma’s indirect WTC reference on Shubman Gill’s insane knock vs MI leaves everyone in splits

The Gujarat Titans produced a dominating performance against the Mumbai Indians on Friday night, as they advanced to the final of the 2023 Indian Premier League with a 62-run win in the second Qualifier.

The Hardik Pandya-led side posted a mammoth 233/3 in 20 overs, and then bowled MI out for 171 in 18.2 overs, with Mohit Sharma taking a brilliant five-wicket haul. The right-arm pacer took merely 2.2 overs to reach the mark, conceding only 10 runs.

The star of the night, however, was Titans’ young opener Shubman Gill, who produced a masterclass in power-hitting with a swashbuckling 129 off just 60 deliveries. Gill smashed 10 sixes and seven fours en route to his third century in the season, propelling the Titans to a strong total after Rohit Sharma opted to bowl in Ahmedabad.

Gill scored his half-century in 32 balls, but took only 17 balls for his next fifty runs; he also registered the highest score by a batter in the tournament’s playoffs history. The opener’s performance was praised by fans and former cricketers alike, and Rohit Sharma, too, praised the Indian youngster for his match-winning knock. However, as he praised Shubman, Rohit also made an indirect reference to the World Test Championship final against Australia.

“All the bowling teams have been challenged this season, looking at what happened in the previous game, we had a great performance. Got to give credit to Shubman, he is in great form and I hope he continues that,” Rohit said, breaking into a chuckle. The MI captain’s response was in reference to the WTC final against Australia, which takes place between June 7-11 in London.

Rohit’s comment also made Ian Bishop – the interviewer – pass a chuckle before he moved on to the next question.

Gill is set to open alongside Rohit in the final of the tournament, with Cheteshwar Pujara, Virat Kohli, and Ajinkya Rahane likely to comprise the remaining of the top and middle-order.

Reflecting on the match, Rohit also said that MI needed a player to bat through like Gill did for GT but it wasn’t to be. “Gill was superb. We needed someone to bat till the end like Gill. It was a good pitch, one side was small, if we had taken the match deep then anything could have happened,” he said.

The Titans, meanwhile, will now face Chennai Super Kings in the final of the 2023 season, scheduled to take place on Sunday (May 28).