During the 40th match of the 11th season of the Indian Premier League (IPL) between Rajasthan Royals (RR) and Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) at Jaipur, Rajasthan Royals beat Kings XI Punjab by 15 runs after their bowlers displayed an outstanding performance.
After Ajinkya Rahane won the toss and chose to bat, Rajasthan Royals’ innings progressed on Jos Buttler’s fourth IPL half-century, the third consecutive of this season. Sans him, Royals wouldn’t have scored as much as they did eventually, i.e., 158-9 in 20 overs.
In the second innings, Kings XI Punjab got off to a poor start, losing not just Chris Gayle but a flurry of wickets at the start. Their poor start did not let them get back into the match to the extent that even a 159-run chase seemed a daunting task. Eventually, they scored 143-7 in 20 overs.
Now, we will look at the hits and flops players in this match.
Hits
Jos Buttler (RR) – Opening the batting with Ajinkya Rahane, Jos Buttler scored his fourth IPL half-century, the third consecutive of this season. In the powerplay, Rajasthan Royals had scored 63-1, out of which Buttler had contributed 45* (22). A 200+ strike rate in the powerplay was what was the need of the hour for the hosts. He ended up scoring 82 (58) with the help of nine fours and a six.
Andrew Tye (KXIP) – Andrew Tye was introduced into the bowling attack as the second change bowler in the fourth over. Sticking by his knack of picking up wickets, Tye dismissed the opposition captain in Ajinkya Rahane (9) in his first over. Tye ended up with bowling figures of 4-0-34-4. With 16 wickets in the tournament, he has now also got hold of the Purple Cap.
Lokesh Rahul (KXIP) – Opening the batting with Chris Gayle, Lokesh Rahul continued his exceptional form, scoring his eight IPL half-century. Although in a losing chase, he ended up scoring his highest ever IPL score, 95* (70), with the help of 11 fours and two sixes.
Flops
Ajinkya Rahane (RR) – Ajinkya Rahane once again promoted himself to open the innings. In a situation where Jos Buttler was doing the majority of the scoring, Rahane had to hold one end up. However, he ended up playing a false shot to a knuckle ball from Andrew Tye. He scored 9 (10) with the help of one four.
Chris Gayle (KXIP) – Opening the batting with Lokesh Rahul, Chris Gayle failed to make any sort of impact tonight. A few overs of his batting would have set the chase in the right direction for his team. That being said, he ended up scoring 1 (1) and was dismissed in the third over.
Karun Nair (KXIP) – Coming in to bat at No. 4 in the third over in a situation where his team required him the most, Karun Nair did not stand up to his expectations. He ended up playing a nothing shot to get out in the following over, leaving his team reeling at 19-3. He scored 3 (5).
