Buttler fires Gujarat to top of IPL table as Lucknow defeat Rajasthan by two runs

Jos Buttler’s unbeaten 97 guided Gujarat Titans over the line and secured a seven-wicket victory over the Delhi Capitals in Match 35 of Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Saturday.

The home side scored 204/3 with four balls to spare and moved to the top of the points table, ahead of Delhi Capitals.

Although Buttler was unable to cross the three-digit milestone on the day, his unbeaten 97, off 54 balls, was immense for his side, especially given the harsh weather conditions.

The Englishman’s innings was laced with 11 boundaries and four sixes, all the while he was visibly struggling with cramps.

Gujarat moved to the top of the IPL table with the victory, owing to their superior run rate over Delhi, and also became the first team to chase a 200+ total against the franchise.

In the first innings, DC were asked to bat first and an all-round batting performance, led by Axar Patel and Ashutosh Sharma, saw Delhi Capitals post 203/8 in 20 overs. For the Gujarat Titans, Prasidh Krishna claimed the Purple Cap with figures of 4-41, taking his season’s wicket tally to 14. Tristian Stubbs, Karun Nair (31), and KL Rahul saw Delhi Capitals get off to a flying start before Krishna’s spell halted the runs for the visiting side, and despite a bigger total that could have been on the books, DC had to settle for 203/8.

Gujarat Titans’ chase got off to a rocky start with skipper Shubman Gill getting run out in the second over with Karun Nair making no mistake in hitting the stumps to give his side a good start.

However, the in-form Sai Sudharsan and Jos Buttler remained strong to give their chase the foundation it required. Things ramped up in the fifth over when Buttler hit Vipraj Nigam for consecutive sixes.

Sudharsan was looking to be in good touch, having hit five boundaries and one six before falling victim to Kuldeep Yadav in the eighth over. A short ball saw the left-handed batter hole it straight to Tristain Stubbs at mid-on.

Just when it seemed DC might fight their way back into the game, Sherfane Rutherford and Buttler tilted the game in the home side’s favour with a 119-run stand for the third wicket. The English wicketkeeper-batter went on to reach the 50-run mark in 32 deliveries before turning on the blasters to rev up the innings.

Perhaps the most pivotal moment came in the 15th over when Axar Patel asked his most trusted bowler, Mitchell Starc, for a change in the tale. However, Buttler took the Aussie pacer to the cleaners and was hit five consecutive boundaries.

With the game seeming to be in the bag, a final twist in the tale came in the penultimate over when Mukesh Kumar removed Rutherford off a full toss, which was caught by Starc, who had to cover quite a bit of distance to take the catch. However, with 10 runs needed in the final over, Rahul Tewatia blasted Starc for a six off the first delivery before a yorker saw the left-hander edge it to the boundary and seal the victory.

In another match, Pacer Avesh Khan picked 3-37, including defending nine runs off the final over, as Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) defended 180 with aplomb and beat Rajasthan Royals by two runs at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

At 156/2 in 17 overs, RR were very much in the hunt to complete the chase, as the equation read 25 runs off 18 balls. But Avesh, with his pinpoint yorkers, removed set batters Yashasvi Jaiswal and Riyan Parag for 74 and 39 respectively.

He then took out Shimron Hetmyer in the final over, while giving away only six runs, to keep RR to 178/5 and complete a memorable come-from-behind win for LSG, leaving everyone in the stadium stunned.

For RR, it was despair yet again as twice in a row, they had failed to close out straightforward chases. The defeat in Jaipur also meant that Sandeep Sharma leaking 27 runs in the final over, including giving away four sixes to Abdul Samad, did come back to pinch them hard, as RR slumped to their fourth consecutive defeat.

Agencies