Short top scores as Kings go down in final over

Matt Short has given Punjab Kings a glimpse of why he was worth investing in as an emergency IPL replacement – but his explosive launch pad wasn't enough to propel them to victory after he ran into an esteemed Adelaide Strikers' teammate.

Short, the KFC BBL|12 player of the tournament, was snapped up last month by the Kings to step in for England's Jonny Bairstow, who failed to recover in time from a horrific leg injury.

While Short lasted just three balls in his Indian Premier League against Hyderabad last Sunday, his destructiveness was on full show on Thursday with a cracking 36 off 24 balls at the top of the Kings' innings against Gujarat Titans in Mohali.

Coming in at No.3 after just two balls, Short looked hugely impressive as he cracked six fours and one towering six over deep midwicket before he ran into his superstar Adelaide teammate Rashid Khan.

As he does so often to batters around the world, the top-ranked T20I bowler needed just three balls to bamboozle Short with a fizzing googly he didn't pick, bowling him all ends up.

His dismissal prompted somewhat of a struggle for the Kings, as they ended up scrambling to 8-153, with Short finishing as their top scorer after player of the match Mohit Sharma suffocated their innings with 2-18 from his four overs.

Then, despite the match coming down to a last-over denouement – a familiar thrilling end to contests so far in this edition of the IPL – the cool head of top finisher Rahul Tewatia, who scooped Sam Curran for four over fine leg off the penultimate ball, was enough to take the Titans to a six-wicket win.

Rashid, who has hailed Short as a proper allrounder, watched his Adelaide colleague go for eight runs in the sole over that he bowled midway though the Titans' innings.

Their chase had earlier been spearheaded by an elegant 49-ball 67 from Shubman Gill, until some excellent death bowling from Arshdeep Singh and Curran made for the nervy finale.

The win sees the Titans climb above Kolkata Knight Riders into third with six points from three wins in four matches, while the Kings remain in sixth with four points from four matches.

Aussies in IPL 2023

Delhi Capitals: Mitch Marsh ($1.2m), David Warner ($1.16m)

Gujarat Titans: Matthew Wade ($446,000)

Lucknow Super Giants: Marcus Stoinis ($1.7m), Daniel Sams ($135,000)

Mumbai Indians: Tim David ($1.53m), Cameron Green ($3.15m), Jason Behrendorff ($135,000)

Punjab Kings: Nathan Ellis ($135,000), Matt Short ($36,000)

Rajasthan Royals: Adam Zampa ($270,000)

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Josh Hazlewood ($1.4m), Glenn Maxwell ($2m)

Figures represent auction price in Australian dollars at time of sale