Rashid and Tewatia star in GT’s Jaipur robbery

Rashid and Tewatia star in GT’s Jaipur robbery.

Sanju Samson and Riyan Parag’s batting heroics proved useless as Rashid Khan’s all-round performance crash the Rajasthan Royals’ perfect record in the IPL. 2024. Rashid blasted the penultimate ball for a boundary to the backward point zone enabling the Gujarat Titans to win by three wickets at Jaipur’s Sawai Mansingh Stadium.

RR openers failed again.

Jos Buttler came into this game after scoring a century against RCB, but the home team didn’t get much help from the openers this time around, as both Yashasvi Jaiswal and Buttler left early. Jaiswal almost chopped on in the opening over from Umesh Yadav, but his innings was cut short in the fifth over when his attempted scoop against the pacer was securely caught by the wicketkeeper’s gloves. Rashid had Buttler caught at slips after edging a slash. It reduced the Royals to 42 for two.

Parag and Samson take front stage.

The two in-form bats once again came to the Royals’ rescue. Wade dropped Parag twice, on 0 and 6, giving him an early advantage. The duo held their own against Rashid and Noor Ahmad’s spin, limiting RR to 52/2 in 8.1 overs. That’s when Parag let go, sweeping Noor over the midwicket boundary. A few balls later, Mohit Sharma’s inability to back up a throw resulted in five runs, giving the Royals the momentum they needed. Despite being careful against the spinners, the hitters took a few chances in each over and kept the scoreboard ticking at a respectable clip. In the 13th over, Parag smashed two slog sweeps off Noor before bringing up his half-century in the next over by hitting Mohit over the long on fence.

Samson, who had been playing a supporting role till then, got started against Spencer Johnson by hitting two boundaries and a six in the following over. He then used his scoops and reverse scoops, which were sometimes ineffective but nonetheless useful. In the 17th over, Rahul Tewatia stumbled, allowing the ball to pass him and assist Samson to another half-century.

Parag left in the penultimate over, holing out to Vijay Shankar in the deep. The fielder took some time to grab control of the catch, falling down, lobbing the ball, and then collecting it a few inches away from the ropes. Nonetheless, Samson and Parag’s 130-run stand in 78 balls provided the foundation for RR’s big score.

Umesh Yadav’s erratic lines and lengths, along with some brute force from Shimron Hetmyer in the last over, propelled the Royals to 196 for 3.

Gill, Sudharsan establish a solid start.

In stark contrast to the Royals, the Gujarat Titans got off to a good start thanks to their openers. The duo played rather conservatively, but they took advantage of the possibilities that presented themselves. Sai Sudharsan hit a boundary off Trent Boult after the left-arm bowler produced some width. He lifted Avesh Khan for a six off a badly aimed short ball. Shubman Gill, on the other hand, was a little more daring. He ran down the track to Keshav Maharaj and whacked him for a six before taking advantage of Avesh’s full deliveries. He drove him for a few boundaries. By the end of the powerplay, they had scored 44 points with no losses.

Yuzvendra Chahal dropped an easy return catch in the eighth over, giving Sudharsan a lifeline at 32. But the opener couldn’t take advantage of it. He fell three runs later in the following over, caught before by Kuldeep Sen.

Kuldeep seizes momentum.

The pacer was on fire after rejecting Sudharsan. In his next over, he dismissed Matthew Wade and Abhinav Manohar, lowering GT from 64/0 to 79/3. Throughout the middle innings, Ashwin and Maharaj were difficult to dismiss. Chahal was also effective but was repeatedly smacked for boundaries. Despite a strong start, the spin trio ensured that the Titans required 85 runs from the final six overs with six wickets in hand.

A struggle to the finish.

Gill, who needed 35 balls to reach his fifty, let wild against Ashwin and Chahal. Just as he appeared to be ready to face the target, Chahal drew him out of his crease with a wide delivery that spun away from his arc and stumped him. Shahrukh Khan delivered a couple of ferocious smashes against Ashwin but was caught leg-before by Avesh in the 18th over.

However, Kuldeep’s erratic last over shifted the tide of the game. It left the Titans needing 15 runs from the last over. There were wides, no balls, and low full-tosses saved for boundaries as Rashid and Rahul Tewatia combined for 20 runs. To make matters worse, the Royals were five minutes behind schedule when the final over began, with one fewer fielder beyond the third-yard circle. This was despite utilizing three spinners to bowl half of their allotted overs.

Rashid blasted the first ball past the square leg region for a boundary. He needed 15 runs from the final over. Two balls later, he sent a heavy outside edge past the keeper for another four. Tewatia was run out on the last ball while trying a third run. It left GT with two runs to win off the final balls. Rashid sliced through the unoccupied backward point region for a four.