IPL 2022: Gujarat Titans beat Rajasthan Royals to win title in first tournament

Hardik Pandya produced a magnificent all-round display as Gujarat Titans won the Indian Premier League in their first season with a seven-wicket victory over Rajasthan Royals.

The Royals were restricted to 130-9 and then Pandya hit 34 from 30 balls, including the prize scalp of England's Buttler for 39.

The India batter hit the first ball of the 18th over for six to win the match in front of a record crowd of almost 105,000 people.

All-rounder Pandya leads Gujarat to glory

The bowling attack was built on a good draft, with Lockie Ferguson, Mohammed Shami, Rashid Khan, and Lockie Ferguson combining to make up an excellent attack.

Putting a group of talented players together doesn't mean success, and that's what Hardik has done by leading them from the front.

In the final, on the biggest stage, he took the three prizes of Buttler, Sanju and Hetmyer, and rotation his bowlers perfectly.

He was supported by one of the world's best white-ball bowlers, Afghanistan's Rashid Khan, who took 1-18.

When the batting stuttered at 23-2, he stopped any threat of a complete collapse by negating the Royals bowling attack with Gill.

Buttler's magnificent IPL ends in defeat

Although his side did not win the trophy, England's Buttler won the Orange Cap, awarded to the highest run-scorer.

He hit four centuries in amassing 863 runs in 17 months to put him second on the list of most runs scored in a single season.

His reputation as one of the world's most destructive T20 batters has grown considerably, despite the fact that he was unable to replicate the fluency of his match-winning 106 not out that propelled his side into this final.

The purple cap that Yuzvendra Chahal was awarded for being the leading bowler was a tribute to the late great Shane Warne, who led the Royals to the title in its first edition in 2008.