IPL 2020: David Miller almost took Ankit Rajpoot’s head off in Rajasthan Royals’ nets session

Ahead of IPL 2020, Rajasthan Royals fast bowler Ankit Rajpoot evaded a deadly blow to his head by ducking out at the last moment in the nets. In a video posted by the franchise on Twitter, Rajpoot can be seen bowling to David Miller, who smashed the ball straight back at him, leaving him just a few milliseconds to react.

The camera on Miller's helmet, which captured the shot, showed Rajpoot first clumsily collapsing to the ground and then laughing. An apology immediately came from the South African left-hander, who even praised Rajpoot for ducking as quickly as he did.

Oye teri 🤯🙈#RoyalsFamily | #HallaBol | @DavidMillerSA12 | @44rajpoot pic.twitter.com/jNOBs4NzNV

— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) September 6, 2020

The Rajasthan Royals, who have set up their base in Dubai, have started a three-week conditioning camp in the build-up to IPL 2020, which begins on September 19. The Royals, however, play their first match on September 22 against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in Sharjah.

Both Miller and Rajpoot earlier played for KXIP in the IPL

Ankit Rajpoot has picked 22 wickets in 23 IPL matches. Image Credits: Cricket Addictor

The Rajasthan Royals bought Miller for his base price of 75 lakhs in the player auction last December. He left Kings XI Punjab after eight years, scoring 1850 runs in 79 IPL matches. Miller and Rajpoot go a long way – they were teammates for the Punjab franchise. Rajpoot’s tenure, however, was shorter, having represented the Kings XI for two seasons (2018 and 2019).

Every member of the Royals franchise is part of a bio-secure bubble after staying in self-isolation for six days and returning three negative Covid-19 reports. Nobody can exit the bubble, with their movements being tracked continuously by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Everyone will further be tested every fifth day.

The BCCI was forced to organise IPL 2020 in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) due to the rising number of coronavirus cases in India. The 13th edition of the cash-rich league will be played behind closed doors across three venues – Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah. The final of this year's IPL will be played on November 10.