Ex-IND star dissects how Sai Sudharsan outshines future India captain: 'His batting is risk-free as compared to Shubman'

Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan continued to dominate with the bat as Gujarat Titans reached the playoffs on Sunday after a win over Delhi Capitals. The young Indian batter stars have shown great consistency at the top of the order and complement each other well to form a solid opening pair. Chasing a 200-run target on Sunday, Titans' opening duo Sudharsan (108 not out) and Gill (93 not out) made it a cakewalk for their side and led them to a 10-wicket win with an over to spare. Sai Sudharsan and Shubman Gill powered Gujarat Titans to playoffs.(AFP)

The two youngsters have been opening innings for the Titans for the second season, and in a short span of time, they have become one of the most consistent pairs in IPL history. The duo scripted a record on Sunday by becoming the Indian pair with the most runs in a season - 839 runs* - surpassing the 744-run partnership record set by Shikhar Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw for Delhi Capitals in 2021.

Sudharsan is currently leading the Orange Cap race with 617 runs in 12 matches, while his skipper, Shubman, is right behind him in second spot with 601 runs.

Former India cricketer Ajay Jadeja heaped praise on Sudharsan, who scored a sublime century vs DC, and said that the young left-handed batter has outshone Shubman, the future India captain, this year.

“Sai Sudharsan has outshone the future India captain. His batting is pleasing to the eye. It is not like he was only ahead of Shubman in the match against Delhi Capitals. He has looked a better batter than Gill in the previous matches as well. His batting is risk-free as compared to Shubman’s,” he said on Star Sports.

"Sai is playing with a more accomplished cricketer…"

The GT skipper didn't mind playing second fiddle to his young opening partner on a couple of occasions, and it was also the case on Sunday. Sudharsan looked fluent throughout, while Shubman started a tad slow but picked up pace by breaking shackles with a few sixes.

Jadeja lavished praise on Sudharsan for shining in front of a more accomplished cricketer who is in reckoning to become India's next Test skipper.

"Sai is playing with a more accomplished cricketer, who plays regularly for the Indian cricket team. Gill was not able to time the ball against Delhi and needed powerful hits to get going, but it was not the case with Sai, who looked at ease,” said Jadeja.

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