IPL 2018, RR vs MI: 5 talking points

Reigning champions Mumbai Indians suffered their fourth defeat of the tournament by losing to Rajasthan Royals at Jaipur.

Batting first, MI lost Evin Lewis in the first over but Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan put them in a commanding position with their 129-run partnership.

Both players reached their fifties but following Kishan's dismissal, MI's run rate declined as none of their other batsmen could contribute much and they ended their innings at 167/7.

Rajasthan Royals lost both their openers early but a 72-run stand between Sanju Samson and Ben Stokes put them in a strong position. However, Mumbai Indians came back with a couple of quick wickets during the death overs in particular.

At this stage, K Gowtham came in and smashed a cameo of 33 from just 11 deliveries to steer the inaugural IPL champions to a much-needed win after two successive losses. RR have now moved up to 5th in the table while Mumbai Indians remain at the 7th position due to a better net run rate than bottom-placed Delhi Daredevils.

Let's take a look at five talking points from tonight's match.

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#5 Mumbai Indians' middle order messed up big time

Pollard played an unnecessarily patient innings

After losing Evin Lewis early, Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan gave their all to put Mumbai Indians in a position where they had a good chance of posting a total around 180-190.

However, Kishan was dismissed for 58 before Yadav followed suit after scoring 72. The remainder of MI's middle order batsmen did almost nothing.

Skipper Rohit Sharma carelessly ran himself out for a golden duck while the Pandya brothers added 11 runs from 8 balls combined. Kieron Pollard's poor run with the bat persisted as he remained unbeaten at 21 from 20 balls.

The "most successful team" in IPL history could add only 32 runs in their final 5 overs which was one of the key reasons behind their defeat.

#4 Suryakumar Yadav and Ishan Kishan produce their second big partnership of the tournament

Yadav and Kishan added 129 for the second wicket

Following the dismissal of Evin Lewis in the first over, Ishan Kishan came in to join Suryakumar Yadav at the crease. Kishan, who was hit in the eye by the ball during MI's previous game against Royal Challengers Bangalore, started slowly while Suryakumar Yadav was playing with aggression.

Soon Kishan joined the party and began to smash some fours and sixes himself. The way he was batting after his first 10-12 deliveries, it was hard to believe that this was the very player who was hit badly by a ball a few days back.

Both players reached their fifties and added 129 runs for the second wicket. This was the duo's second major partnership of the tournament, having added 78 for the third wicket in the opener against CSK. Yadav scored 72 while Kishan scored 58.

#3 Samson and Stokes had a crucial partnership

Samson and Stokes added 72 for the third wicket

Following the early dismissals of openers Ajinkya Rahane and Rahul Tripathi, Sanju Samson and Ben Stokes were at the crease. Both players played steadily but sensibly to make sure RR didn't lose another wicket.

Samson and Stokes added 72 for the third wicket and were giving the Mumbai Indian bowlers one heck of a tough time. The partnership came to an end when Ben Stokes was dismissed after scoring 40 from 27 deliveries. Samson went on to score 52 before being dismissed. This partnership played a pivotal role in securing RR's victory.

#2 Jofra Archer's dream IPL debut

Archer had a great start to the IPL

Jofra Archer was bought by Rajasthan Royals for a price of Rs. 7.2 crore. However, doubts began to linger regarding his participation in the IPL as he was ruled out of the PSL due to a side strain.

Nevertheless, Archer managed to regain fitness in time and made his IPL debut tonight. Archer's first three overs were pretty economical and his line and length were good too.

However, his finest moment of the match came during his final over which was the penultimate over of the MI innings. Archer dismissed Krunal Pandya in the very first ball. In the third ball, he conceded a boundary from Hardik Pandya before rattling his stumps in the following delivery. Archer then bowled out Mitchell McClenaghan and was on a hat-trick. However, he was unable to get it.

Archer eventually ended his spell at 3/22 from his four overs. His fantastic debut spell earned him the Man of the Match award tonight.

#1 K Gowtham's cameo does the trick for RR

Gowtham played a priceless cameo tonight

Following the dismissals of Sanju Samson and Ben Stokes, the pressure was gradually mounting on Rajasthan Royals as they lost Jos Buttler and Heinrich Klaasen early too.

Needing 43 from 18 deliveries, RR's only hope with the bat was K Gowtham and boy did he deliver.

Gowtham began to smash some big shots to make the equation 10 runs from the final over which was totally achievable. He smashed a boundary in the second ball before hitting a brilliant six to end the match for Rajasthan Royals. Gowtham ended with 33 from 11 deliveries.

Jofra Archer may have been the MoM tonight but K Gowtham's contribution with both bat and ball (0/20 from 3 overs) was priceless.

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