Batting as an impact sub, Sudharsan rarely played a false shot in his 108*, his 205-run partnership with Gill ensuring GT were home with an over to spare. The win means with 18 points to their credit, GT have secured their place in the playoffs while DC, who were in a must-win situation for a clear passage to last-four, will now have to depend on other results besides winning their two remaining matches at home. The result also sealed the playoffs berth of Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings.

Playoffs though looks a tall order for the hosts who have been quite woeful at home. The Sunday shellacking was their fourth at the Arun Jaitley Stadium this season, their only win being a Super Over victory against Rajasthan Royals. The four away wins on the bounce seem a lifetime away.

While DC have a lot of soul searching to do, GT will revel in the sublime form of their top three, each of who have scored over 500 runs this season. Sudharsan’s ton in fact made him the only batter to cross the 600-run mark this edition. Following him is his skipper Gill, who stroked a typically delightful 93* off 53 balls (3×4, 7×6).

The night, however, belonged to Sudharsan who had impressed with 527 runs last season as well. The 23-year-old southpaw played shots all around the wicket, treating pace and spin with equal disdain as GT were lightning off the blocks in the 200-run pursuit after DC made 199/3. Pleasing on the eye with his nimble footwork and shot selection, Sudharsan was the early aggressor, first tearing into T Natarajan and then taking a toll of the spinners.

Gill joined the fun after powerplay, using his reach and strong wrists to regularly hit the spin of Axar Patel, Vipraj Nigam and Kuldeep Yadav straight over the top.

GT’s hundred was raised in the 11th over but the floodgates well and truly opened in the 13th over, bowled by Dushmantha Chameera. Gill first laced a rasping straight drive and then lofted him over midwicket for six. Sudharsan closed the over with a cut and the chase was firmly underway. In the end, the chase proved to be a canter on a true batting surface.

Earlier, opening the innings for only the second time this IPL – the other occasion was against CSK on April 5 – KL Rahul put on an exhibition of breathtaking batting, blending his silken strokes with deft placement and rarely hitting an ungainly shot on way to an undefeated 112 (65 balls, 14X4, 4X6).

His first, and the only unconventional shot of the evening, arrived in the 20th over when he reverse-ramped Mohammed Siraj for a lucky boundary. That adventure apart, Rahul’s innings flowed seamlessly as he made up for a conservative start with timely acceleration. Ably supported by Abhishek Porel with whom he raised 90 runs off 52 balls for the second wicket, Rahul notched up his fifth IPL ton, the first of this edition with an array of delightful drives, both on the rise and along the ground.

GT began well after Gill called correctly at the toss. With Kagiso Rabada back from his one-month provisional suspension for recreational drug use, GT’s pace attack got the potent boost. In Purple Cap holder Prasidh Krishna (20 wickets) and the experienced Mohammed Siraj (15 wickets), the visitors were not short of pace firepower anyway. Ultimately, as the result showed, 199 runs ended in being a perfect bargain on this Kotla track.