In the Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Mumbai Indians (MI), all-rounder Rashid Khan of Gujarat Titans (GT) and West Indies bowler Alzarri Joseph set a record by forming the second-highest partnership for the ninth wicket in T20 cricket history.
The Mumbai Indians defeated Gujarat Titans by 27 runs on Friday at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, despite Rashid Khan's heroic 79-run effort.
The pair put up an unbroken 88-run partnership for the ninth wicket. When compared to Joseph (7* in 12 balls with a four), Rashid made a far larger contribution (79* in 32 balls, with three fours and 10 sixes).
Saber Zakhil and Saqlain Ali put up an unbroken 132 runs for Belgium against Austria back in 2021 at Waterloo, setting the record for the longest ninth-wicket stand in T20 cricket.
Rashid also made history by being the fourth player in the IPL to get a half-century while batting at or below position eight. In the 2015 IPL, Harbhajan Singh (64) faced the Punjab Kings and became the first batter to achieve it.
Chris Morris, a South African all-rounder, followed it for the Delhi Capitals (52*) against MI in the 2017 IPL. Later, in IPL 2021, Pat Cummins (66*) scored 50 runs for Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) against Chennai Super Kings (CSK).
Rashid also became the third player in IPL history to record both a double-hundred and a four-wicket haul in a losing effort.
Yuvraj Singh has also achieved this feat twice, batting 66 and getting 4/29 for Pune Warriors India (PWI) against DC in 2011 and scoring 83 and taking 4/35 for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) against Rajasthan Royals in IPL 2014.
GT gave MI the opportunity to bat first, and in their 20 overs, they posted 218/5. With a fast 61-run opening partnership, openers Ishan Kishan (31 off 20 balls) and captain Rohit Sharma got things going.
To get MI to 88/3, Rashid Khan withdrew the openers and Nehal Wadhera (15). From that point on, it was all Suryakukar Yadav.
He had a 65-run partnership with Vishnu Vinod (30 off 20 balls) for the fourth wicket. Suryakumar eventually scored his first IPL century, a 103* score off 49 balls that included 11 fours and 6 sixes.
For GT, Rashid Khan (4/31) was the preferred bowler. Additionally, Mohit Sharma took a wicket.
GT lost wickets as they chased 219 from the get-go. Despite a knock of 29 runs by Vijay Shankar, they were reduced to 55/5.
But David Miller and Rahul Tewatia's 45-run partnership (41 in 26 balls; 14 in 13 balls) helped GT reach the three-figure mark.
When they were expelled, Rashid Khan continued the struggle. His sixes assisted in reducing the deficit and prevented his team's net run rate from suffering even though the side seemed to be out of the game.
The Afghan all-rounder hit three fours and ten sixes in his 79* in only 32 balls.
To help GT reach 191/8 in their 20 overs, he and Alzarri Joseph (7*) put up an 88-run partnership for the ninth wicket. MI defeated RC by 27 runs.
MI chose Akash Madhwal (3/31) as their go-to bowler. Piyush Chawla (2/36) carried on with his outstanding IPL 2023 performance as well. In addition, Jason Behrendorff secured a wicket.
Due to his century that won the game, Suryakumar was named “Man of the Match.”
With this victory, MI moves up to third place in the points standings with seven victories and five defeats. They have 14 points overall. With eight victories and four defeats, GT is still in first place. They have 16 points altogether.
