LUCKNOW, 12 APRIL

 Skipper Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan struck quick-fire half-centuries during their 120-run opening stand before Lucknow Super Giants pulled things back brilliantly to restrict Gujarat Titans to 180 for six in an IPL match on Saturday.

Sudharsan (56 off 37) struck his fourth fifty of the season and created a platform for a massive total with Gill (60 off 38) but the home bowlers made a valiant comeback, picking up three quick wickets to put a brake on the high scoring rate.

The visitors could manage just 60 in the last eight overs after raising the best opening wicket partnership of the season.

Making a flying start, Sudharsan opened the innings with a boundary, punching Shardul Thakur (2/34) short delivery to the backward point.

Both Sudharsan and Gill collected boundaries in almost every over, punishing the home bowlers.

GT brought up their fifty in the sixth over when Sudharsan whipped a Avesh Khan delivery on the pads over the backward square-leg fence as the visitors scored 64 in the powerplay.

But it was Sudharsan who played the second fiddle as his skipper Gill effortlessly found boundaries with his clean and simple batting.

Gill cut and pulled and also effortlessly went down the wicket to pick up his first six, straight over long-on off Aiden Markram.

The skipper brought up his half-century off just 31 balls with a single down the ground of Digvesh Rathi (1/30) in the ninth over.

GT raced to 103 for no loss at the half-way mark.

Sudharsan, however, got a reprieve when Abdul Samad dropped him off Digvesh in the 11th over. He soon completed his fifty with a sweep to the fine leg boundary.

LSG finally had the first breakthrough in the first ball of the 13th over, when Gill was caught brilliantly just inches from the long-on boundary by Markram off Avesh (1/32).

LSG struck another blow just after the final strategic timeout in the form of Sudharsan. Just after the break, the left-hander went for a lofted over extra cover of Ravi Bishnoi (2/36) but failed to get past Nicholas Pooran, who took a fine catch.