Royal Challengers Bangalore batsman Tillakaratne Dilshan feels that his opening partner Chris Gayle’s record-breaking knock against Pune Warriors in their IPL match was the best ever he had seen in his career.
Dilshan was at the other end for major part of the RCB innings when Gayle butchered Pune bowlers for 175 not out from just 66 balls last night, the highest individual score in any T20 cricket.
Asked if he has seen any such innings in his career at the non-striker’s end, Dilshan said, “No. This was the first time. I batted with him in the last IPL too and he scored a couple of hundreds. But this was something special.
Clean hitting
“In my career this was the first time I saw someone hit the ball so cleanly. I was just standing at the other end and enjoying every bit of it,” said Dilshan, who formed a 167-run opening partnership with Gayle in RCB’s 263 for five.
Asked what separates him and Gayle, Dilshan said, “I think he has more power. I try to give him more strike in the first six overs because I know that he can clear the 30-yard circle more cleanly than I can. Not only the circle, he can clear the ground easily.”
