IPL 2022: Mayank Agarwal's heartwarming message for Odean Smith after Rahul Tewatia destroys PBKS

Punjab Kings (PBKS) captain Mayank Agarwal has backed Odean Smith "100%" after Rahul Tewatia smashed the West Indian bowler for two consecutive sixes to help Gujarat Titans (GT) win.

GT needed 19 runs off the final over during his chase of 190 in their Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 clash with PBKS on Friday. After bowling a wide, Odean removed GT captain Hardik Pandya. The dismissal brought Rahul Tewatia in the middle. David Miller hit a four and an overthrow from Odean gifted GT a run, bringing Tewatia at the crease.

GT needed 12 runs off the final two balls.

SIX!

SIX!

Odean was left devastated as GT players ran to the ground to embrace their hero, Tewatia. PBKS defeated GT by six wickets to register their third consecutive win in IPL 2022.

In the post-match interview, Mayank said that the last over could have gone anywhere and they will back Odean totally as it is just a game of cricket. The PBKS skipper also praised Kagiso Rabada and Arshdeep Singh. While Rabada picked up two wickets, the latter did not make a breakthrough but bowled economically.

"It was a tough game but we really fought hard. We were 5-7 runs short but we pulled it back after the start they had. There were a lot of positives for us. We did really well to get ourselves to that score after losing so many wickets, so we were very happy with that. We fought really hard on the field.

It was great execution by both of them (Rabada and Arshdeep), a fantastic effort by them to pull the game, they really got us in the game. The last over could have been anyone's game. We totally back Odean, it's fine, he probably had a hard game but that's fine. We back him a 100%. It's just a game of cricket, it could be a bitter one to swallow but it's fine. The talk in the group is we always back the guys. If he has a bad day, he has a bad day, no worries, we back him 100%," added Mayank.

Earlier, PBKS' Living Liamstone once again produced an entertaining knock as he scored 64 off 27 balls, including seven fours and four sixes. The next best batsman was Shikhar Dhawan, who scored 35 off 30 balls.

PBKS have a four-day break before their IPL 2022 clash with Mumbai Indians (MI) on Wednesday (April 13).

Gujarat's next game is scheduled to take place on Monday (April 11) and is against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) at DY Patil Stadium, Navi Mumbai.