- Saturday, May 04, 2024
By: Shubham Ghosh
FORMER Indian Premier League (IPL) champions Rajasthan Royals (RR) kept their hopes of making the playoffs of the ongoing edition of the tournament alive by thumping table-toppers Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by seven wickets in a crucial encounter at the Zayed Cricket Stadium in Abu Dhabi in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Saturday (2).
Yashasvi Jaiswal (50 off 21 balls) and Shivam Dube (64 off 42) dwarfed the target that Chennai had set them (190 off 20 overs) and Rajasthan were home with 15 balls to spare. Rajasthan were given a flying start by openers Evin Lewis (27 off 12) and Jaiswal as the duo picked 53 runs in only four overs. Jaiswal slammed fifty in just 19 balls.
Even after RR lost two wickets, their chase was not hampered as captain Sanju Samson (28 off 24) and Dube carried on with the momentum and Rajasthan reached 100 in just nine overs. Dube slammed his maiden IPL fifty in only 31 balls.
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For Chennai, Shardul Thakur took two wickets for 30 runs but it was not enough to stop Rajasthan from picking two vital points that kept them in the hunt for a play-off berth.
Earlier, Chennai batsmen also displayed a top batting performance with in-form opening batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad hitting 101 runs in just 60 balls and Ravindra Jadeja slamming 32 down the order in just 15 balls. In the last five overs, CSK belted 73 runs to reach a challenging total of 189 for 4 in 20 overs. Gaikwad was picked as the man of the match for his maiden T20 ton.
For Rajasthan, Rahul Tewatia was the pick of the bowlers by claiming three scalps for 39 runs.
While CSK and Delhi Capitals (both 18 points off 12 games) have qualified for the playoffs, six teams are in the run for the remaining two spots. Royal Challengers Bangalore are in the third spot with 14 points from 12 games while Kolkata Knight Riders, Punjab Kings, Rajasthan and Mumbai Indians are all tied at 10 points from 12 games. Sunrisers Hyderabad have a theoretical chance with only four points from 11 outings.
