Gujarat Titans opener Sai Sudharsan slammed his third Indian Premier League century on Friday against the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Bengaluru skipper Rajat Patidar has won the toss and has put Bengaluru to bat first, and in response, Sudharsan has scored a sublime 100 runs from 57 balls.
After the 73 from 44 balls he scored against the , Sudharsan has hit a bit of a lean patch, but against on a good batting deck at Chinnaswamy, the southpaw looked in imperious form with his shot-making. He slammed 11 boundaries and five sixes on his way to the three-digit mark.
In a league like , where the flamboyance and fearlessness of Priyansh Arya, Vaibhav Sooryavanshi and Ayush Mhatre have gained traction, Sai Sudharsan’s flair has also stood out. Of the many youngsters who dazzle in T20S with quirky shots or muscled hits, the opener stands apart with his conventional strokeplay. There is a stillness and compactness that’s quite impressive. In particular, his weight transfer, whether forward or back, is way better than that of many established names.
“As a batting coach, what stands out for me are his smooth hands and mindset,” batting coach Tanveer Jabbar tells The Indian Express in the past. “He is one of the few players who plays with a very soft bottom hand. So, he gets most of his runs where he intends to. He is a guy who can get you singles as well as boundaries. His back-lift is his biggest asset. And his mindset has given him good game awareness.”
“Primarily, what we look for is that a batter should have at least a couple of options for every delivery. That is something which Sai has worked on. That’s why he has been so successful. Against the short ball, he can go on the backfoot and punch it to cover and, if need be, can pull it as well. He pulls, sweeps and has the straight drive. If you look around in the domestic circuit, there are not too many batsmen who play straight drives. That’s because of their bat flow. But he has those shots in his book, which is testament to his technique. And obviously, he has got very nimble feet to complement his good hands. All of it means that his balance is very good with a still head,” Jabbar noted on Sudharsan’s technique.
