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With that we come to the end of match number 52 in this edition of the IPL, from the Wankhede Stadium. Rajasthan Royals have recorded an impressive victory against Punjab Kings and now sit pretty in the third position of the standings. Punjab have all to do now with the remaining games in hand if they have to entertain thoughts of finishing in the top four. This has been the commentary pair of Soorya and Bidipto, and until next time, we bid you good bye! Keep following Sportskeeda!
Rajasthan Royals - 190/4 in 19.4 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 68 off 41 balls, Arshdeep Singh 2/29 in 4 overs) beat Punjab Kings - 189/5 in 20 overs (Jonny Bairstow 56 off 40 balls, Yuzvendra Chahal 3/28 in 4 overs) by 6 wickets.
Player of the Match: Yashasvi Jaiswal
It required a flying start to get the run chase going in the right direction, Jos Buttler provided it! It required someone to hold the innings together, Yashasvi Jaiswal stepped up, and it required someone to finish the innings with a flourish, and that job was done by Shimron Hetmyer! Rajasthan Royals did exactly what the doctor ordered in this run chase and got the much needed victory!
Devdutt Padikkal, who was slow to get going, also chipped in with a handy contribution and picked up two important boundaries in Kagiso Rabada's last over to take his team ever closer to the target.
Yashasvi Jaiswal was indeed the pick of the batters for Rajasthan as his scintillating stroke play against both pace and spin was breathtaking today!
Mayank Agarwal would have perhaps liked another spinner in his ranks to bowl some overs, as the one-dimensional nature of the Punjab Kings bowling, with only Rahul Chahar being a spinner, did not work well for them. Agarwal did rotate his bowlers well, and set some good fields, but unfortunately for him, some big overs cost his team dearly.
Rabada's last over, Rishi Dhawan's last over, Rahul Chahar's third over and Sandeep Sharma's first and third overs proved too much to bear for their team as plenty got scored off them at the wrong time. Rabada's first over also went for a lot but for the wicket of Buttler.
The pitch was good to bat on under lights and the sticky nature of the surface did not quite come to the fore in the second innings.
Arshdeep Singh was particularly good with his yorkers in the end and is making a name for himself for all the right reasons in the Indian cricketing fraternity at the minute.
Rajasthan Royals now go to the third position in the standings with 14 points while Punjab Kings are seventh with 10 points. Both teams have played 11 matches each.
Rajasthan Royals get their first win chasing this season, and do so with two balls to spare! It is a 6-wicket victory for them!
19.4 Rahul Chahar to Shimron Hetmyer, GAME OVER! Tossed up full toss on leg stump, Hetmyer just lifts it through the line of it without middling it well enough as he has a little shimmy down the track. Bairstow runs in from long on but it drops well shy of him as the batters saunter across to seal the game. There was a bit of a scare towards the but eventually, Rajasthan Royals beat Punjab Kings by 6 wickets and 2 deliveries to spare!
19.3 Rahul Chahar to Shimron Hetmyer, DOT BALL AGAIN! Back of a length delivery just outside off, Hetmyer rocks back and punches it straight to cover.
19.2 Rahul Chahar to Shimron Hetmyer, DOT BALL! Quick on a good length around leg stump, Hetmyer hops across and glances it fine but the fielder is quick to intercept.
19.1 Rahul Chahar to Shimron Hetmyer, SIX! MONSTROUS! Oh Shimron Hetmyer, you beauty! Three men deep on the leg-side but he doesn't care. In the slot and flighted around leg stump, he comes forward and launches it with a clean swing of the blade over long on to send it into the crowd. The scores are level now!
19.1 Rahul Chahar to Shimron Hetmyer, WIDE! That's a win for the Royals! Tossed up into a shortish length outside leg, Hetmyer sits low looking to help it over fine leg but fails to connect. The extra bounce deceives the keeper too as he fumbles.
Rahul Chahar [3.0-0-31-0] is back into the attack.
Arshdeep has nailed the yorkers as perfectly as he could! Batters really could not get underneath any of those and had to settle for one run at best. This has been an exhibition of full length bowling in the slog overs and now, Rajasthan Royals need 8 runs off 6 ball when the game could have been over by now!
19
overs
182/4score
1
1
1
0
W
0
runs
Shimron Hetmyer
24(12)
Riyan Parag*
0(1)
Arshdeep Singh
2/29
18.6 Arshdeep Singh to Riyan Parag, around the wicket and right at the stumps as he hits the blockhole yet again. Parag can only squeeze it out into the pitch and that is top-class bowling from Arshdeep Singh! What an asset for a bowling unit!
Riyan Parag, RHB, is at the crease.
18.5 Arshdeep Singh to Devdutt Padikkal, OUT! STRAIGHT TO THE MAN! It's a juicy full toss as the yorker goes wrong, Padikkal thrashes it aiming to clear the man at cover but ends up powering it straight to the Punjab Kings skipper instead. End of a real crawl from Padikkal and this game isn't over yet!
Devdutt Padikkal c Mayank Agarwal b Arshdeep Singh 31 (32) (3x4)
18.4 Arshdeep Singh to Devdutt Padikkal, another yorker outside off that is executed to the T, Padikkal can only shovel it out towards short cover who puts in an excellent diving stop.
18.3 Arshdeep Singh to Shimron Hetmyer, another inch-perfect yorker outside off, Hetmyer jams his bat into the turf and manages to squeeze it out towards cover as he charges across the pitch. Sharp pick up and throw on the underarm but Padikkal is home.
18.2 Arshdeep Singh to Devdutt Padikkal, another wide yorker, Padikkal drills it along the carpet for a single to long off as Hetmyer gets back on strike.
18.1 Arshdeep Singh to Shimron Hetmyer, nails the wide yorker first up, Hetmyer leans forward and dinks it out on the full. Rolls past Arshdeep even as he sticks a boot out to his right and the batters cross over.
Kagiso Rabada will be very disappointed with the four off the first ball of the over against Devdutt Padikkal. He was way back, waiting for anything short and he got it right where he wanted at just the right pace! That four could have been avoided. Rabada is so good with his yorkers but those block hole deliveries have been missing somewhat. The pick up shot from Hetmyer in the over and the touch for four by Padikkal were good shots!
18
overs
179/3score
4
1
0
6
1
4
runs
Devdutt Padikkal*
30(29)
Shimron Hetmyer
22(10)
Kagiso Rabada
1/50
17.6 Kagiso Rabada to Devdutt Padikkal, FOUR! BEATS THE DIVE! Slower delivery outside the leg stump on a good length, Padikkal hops aside and uses his dexterous wrists for a glance behind square. The boundary rider puts in a valiant dive to his left but alas, to no avail.