Gujarat Lions skipper Suresh Raina has showered praise on team-mate Dwayne Smith by describing him as the 'main all-rounder' after his four-wicket haul helped the side to claim a six-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders here at the Green Park Stadium last evening.
Put in to bat first, Gautam Gambhir's side were restricted to mere 124 runs in their stipulated 20 overs, with Dhawal Kulkarni, Dwayne Bravo and Shadab Jakati also chipping in with a wicket each.
In reply, Gujarat Lions chased down the target in just 13.3 overs, thanks to their skipper for his unbeaten 53 off 36 balls.
"I think the last two games are really important for us. When you are in doubt to reach top four, then you have to win each and every game. I think Smith had bowled really well. I have always felt he is not the main batsman, but he is always a main all-rounder. He has always hit the ball really hard.
At the same time, when he chips in and bowl crucial four overs that set the game for us," the left-handed bastman said after the win.
Raina, however, called on his side to continue to maintain their momentum if they want to keep alive their hopes of making into the play-offs.
The match also saw Raina snatch back his record of being the highest run getter in the tournament from Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli by smacking an 87-metre six off Morne Morkel's delivery.
On Wednesday, Kohli became the tournament's highest run scorer and the first batsman to score 4000 IPL runs after he smashed an unprecedented fourth century of the season during his side's 82-run win by Duckworth-Lewis method over Kings XI Punjab at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.
With the win, Gujarat Lions have climbed up to the second spot in the points table, with eight wins from 13 games they have played so far.
Gujarat Lions will play their next match against Mumbai Indians at the same venue on Saturday.
