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Shashank Singh Parihar
Tuesday: A new look in re-energized Rajasthan Royals (RR) attracted from the start, thrashing Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) for 61 runs to start their IPL-15 on a high note. After skipper Sanju Samson led from the front with his magnificent 27 balls 55 to push his team to an imposing total of 210/6.
Rajasthan Royals dominated Surisers in every department. After a dismal start to their innings which saw them drop to 9/3 and then 29/4. Sunrisers failed to pose any significant danger to the Royals in the second half of their opening match.
New look Rajasthan batters showed up
When allowed to bat, the Royals smashed a mammoth 210 for 6 on a batting paradise before restricting the Sunrisers to 147 for 7. Starting their 2022 season in style. The Royals foundation was built by Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal, who was followed by skipper Sanju Samson (55 off 27 balls) and Devdutt Padikkal (41 off 29 balls).
After the departures of both the openers Jaiswal and Buttler inside the ninth over. The Sunrisers still had a chance to tighten the screws. But Captain Samson, on the other hand, connected on practically every shot he took.
Padikkal, who didn’t appear to be having any trouble adjusting to the No. 4 place, was an excellent complement to the skipper. In their 73-run third-wicket stand, both batsmen improvised and produced some brilliant strokes over the line. The Royals crossed the 200- run mark thanks to Shimron Hetmyer’s (32 off 13 balls) heroics.
Bhuvaneswar and no-ball, are not a new story
For Bhuvaneswar Kumar, these were ideal conditions, as he had Buttler fumbling in the dark in the first over. He was set up for the outswinger in the fifth ball after three outswingers and a wide inswinger.
Butler opted for inswing, edging the ball through for a wonderful slip catch by Abdul Samad, but the no-ball buzzer was shortly sounded. Umran Malik, the pace sensation, had Butler on the verge of sleeping in his first over, but he too overstepped. The Royals raced to 58 run lead on the power play thanks to a slew of blunders.
Sunrisers Bowlers got hammered badly
All the Sunrisers bowlers were hammered to all areas of the pitch. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1/29), Romario Shepherd (1/33), and the incredibly fast Umran Malik (2/39).
Brilliant bowling spell by Boult and Prasidh
In reply, Prasidh Krishna and Trent Boult had the Sunrisers straggling to recover at 9 for 3 in the fifth over, effectively putting them out of the game. Boult caught a wobbly Nicholas Pooran lbw, while Prasidh bowls the precise length to take the vital wickets of skipper Kane Williamson and his previous team KKR buddy Rahul Tripathi.
“Controversial” decision cost Williamson’s wicket
The captain of Rajasthan Royals dives, but the ball popped out of his grasp. Padikkal, who was on the first slip, demonstrated excellent reflexes by driving forward and catching a low one-handed catch. Before having a check of each angle, the umpire gave the decision in favor of the Royals.
Chahal destroyed the middle order
Yuzvendra Chahal, who was released by Royal Challengers Bangalore, once again demonstrated his mettle. This time donning the Rajasthan Royals pink. The Royals leg-spinner took a wicket in his first over and ripped through the middle overs to add to Sunriser’s frustration. Chahal ended his four-over session with figures of 3/22.
Sundar played “Aati-Sundar” knock
Washington Sundar, who let up 47 runs in three overs, compensated with a six-hitting binge in his combination with Aiden Markram. To ensure that SRH closed the distance, the two added 50 in just 19 balls. Sundar was dismissed for a 14-ball 40 by Trent Boult in the penultimate over.
The Sunrises were unable to recover from such a setback and were only able to get close to 150 runs. Due to the efforts of Aiden Markram (57 not out) and Washington Sundar (40) in just 14 balls.