"Chhoti bachchi ho kya?" - Fans react as Riyan Parag & Harshal Patel get involved in a heated exchange in IPL 2022

Just as questions were mounting about his place in the side, Riyan Parag proved on Tuesday why the Rajasthan Royals (RR) have persisted with him.

The 20-year-old paced his innings to perfection. His sensational 56* off 31 balls has ensured that RR have posted a fighting total of 144/8 in their 20 overs against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).

Rajasthan kept on losing wickets at regular intervals and it looked like they would struggle to get to 120 at one point. However, Riyan Parag took on Harshal Patel in the last over and gave RR the momentum they needed going into the second innings.

As the players walked off, there seemed to be a heated exchange between Riyan Parag and Patel. Fans on Twitter reacted to the exchange and also hailed the 20-year-old for coming good under pressure.

Here are some of the reactions:

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Riyan Parag's dropped catch could prove to be pivotal moment

RCB captain Faf du Plessis had no hesitation in bowling first and making use of some grass left on the pitch. Mohammed Siraj struck in his first over, sending back Devdutt Padikkal. The pacer also removed Ravichandran Ashwin, who was in the mood to play some shots.

But probably the biggest wicket was that of Jos Buttler. With Josh Hazlewood bowling accurately, Buttler tried to use his feet and disturb the bowler's rhythm. However, he could only hit the ball straight into the hands of Siraj.

Sanju Samson walked out to bat and looked to up the ante right from the get-go. But as has been the case with the RR skipper for most of his career so far, Samson threw his wicket away by getting cleaned up after attempting a reverse-sweep.

Daryl Mitchell looked extremely rusty in his first outing for RR and things went from bad to worse as the dangerous Shimron Hetmyer was also sent back to the shed. But Riyan Parag paced his innings smartly and took the game deep.

Despite wickets falling at the other end, the 20-year-old rotated the strike and picked the final two overs bowled by Hazlewood and Patel to attack. The latter was understandably frustrated as he has been RCB's strike bowler and isn't used to being hit for runs often at the death.

A score of 145 doesn't seem to be a challenging total for RCB but with the gun bowling attack that RR have, they will need their star batters to step up and ensure there are no hiccups.

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