IPL 2018, RR vs KXIP: 5 reasons why Kings XI Punjab lost 

On a cool evening in north-west India, Rajasthan Royals were playing Kings XI Punjab for the second time in a span of three days at Sawai Man Singh stadium in Jaipur.

Ajinkya Rahane called the right side of the toss and decided to put some runs on the board. It was a call that paid off as the home team made their way to a tough 158 on a wicket stayed on the slower side.

Chasing 159 on a tricky surface, it was always difficult for the Kings to come back after losing few too many wickets in the powerplay. However, KL Rahul with his 95* kept their hopes alive as he carried his bat once again but no support from the other end meant a loss by 15 runs for the visitors.

Let’s take a look at some of the reasons that propelled a Punjab loss:

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#1 Butler’s inning of 82 from 58 deliveries

In what was just his third inning as an opener, Jos Butler was yet again instrumental in his exploits with the bat. The experienced English campaigner laid a perfect foundation for his side to capitalize later on in the innings. He got his side to a splendid start before Punjab staged a late comeback into the game.

His innings of 82 runs from 58 deliveries propelled his side to a comfortable score in the first six overs. It was some clean hitting from the wicket-keeper batsmen that pushed the opposition onto the backfoot early on in the match. It was his 3rd consecutive 50+ score as an opener in this year’s VIVO IPL.

#2 Ashwin’s uncanny decisions at the start

After losing the toss, the start of the match saw some unusual decisions from the Kings XI skipper. Against the likes of Jos Butler and Ajinkya Rahane, the off-spinner decided to throw the ball to Marcus Stoinis, a slow right-arm pacer to start it for Punjab.

In a team that boasts of some high-quality bowlers including him, this was one of the unexpected moves that didn’t pay off as the opposition got the momentum to play their shots freely. Even the next over, which was offered to Axar Patel went for runs before he turned to his new ball bowlers with the likes of Mohit Sharma and Andrew Tye.

#3 Few too many wickets in the powerplay

Chasing 159 on a pitch that offered spin, it was necessary for Kings XI to start well in the powerplay overs. However, things didn’t pan out the way they would have wanted as they few too many wickets in the powerplay to put pressure on the incoming batsmen with that run rate going up with every dot ball.

The men in red could muster only 33 runs in their first six overs. It was courtesy some tight bowling from the opposition which saw them in a spot of bother at the end of the powerplay. They lost three wickets with crucial scalps of Chris Gayle and Karun Nair to add to the worries ahead for the visitors.

#4 Middle-order fails again for Kings XI

This has been the major problem for the Kings XI Punjab in this year’s IPL. The unsettled middle order has failed to fire on most occasions to leave the management with a certain headache going into the business end of the tournament.

Punjab is a team which is top heavy and the likes of Chris Gayle and KL Rahul have compensated for that lacklustre middle order. In this match again, a rare failure of top-order exposed their middle order to leave them in a spot of bother. It was evident with the kind of shots played after the powerplay as the end was near for the visitors as they failed to complete a double over Rajasthan.

#5 Ish Sodhi’s match-changing spell

Rajasthan went with a policy of ‘Horses for courses’ in their tie against Kings XI as they roped in Ish Sodhi in place of D’Arcy Short on a pitch that assisted spinners. The leggie from New Zealand didn’t disappoint in another outing for his franchise.

He was exceptional in his line and length to be not getting carried away with the spin offered on such a track. In his spell of four overs, he bagged a wicket and conceded 14 runs at an economy of 3.50 runs per over. He choked the opposition to put brakes on the scoring rate.