Hyderabad: Brilliant half-centuries from Jos Buttler, Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sanju Samson powered Rajasthan Royals to a massive 203/5 against Sunrisers Hyderabad in the fourth match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 at Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, here on Sunday.
Royals got off to a brilliant start with Buttler and Jaiswal keeping SRH bowlers at bay with their impressive batting display and later skipper Samson also used the set platform to put his team in his strong position.
Before the start of the first innings, a minute of silence was observed to mourn the loss of the legendary all-rounder Salim Durani, who passed away at his residence in Jamnagar after a prolonged battle with cancer at the age of 88.
When the game started, the opening duo of Buttler and Yashaswi Jaiswal gave RR a strong start with 85 coming off the first six over for the loss on one wicket after they were invited to bat first.
Jaiswal got a boundary in the first over off Bhuvneshwar with a gentle push down the ground that beat the fielder at mid-off, followed by two more boundaries along with two triples in the second over. Buttler then started off the third over with an effortless six over mid-wicket. Jaiswal, who looked hungry for runs, followed that up with back-to-back fours.
The English captain showed his pure class in the fourth over as he hit Washington Sundar for two successive sixes. Jaiswal too went for a four. With two runs off the last delivery, the over ended with 19 runs.
The next over Buttler collected four boundaries and a single off T Natarajan. He completed his fifty off just 20 balls with two boundaries in the sixth over. But Fazalhaq Farooqi didn’t let Buttler extend his stay on the crease as he sent the attacking batter back soon after his half-century, ending the 85-run opening partnership at the end of the powerplay.
After Buttler’s dismissal, SRH run rate slowed down a bit but the skipper took over the aggressor’s role and went for two boundaries in the eight over as RR crossed the 100-run mark.
SRH bowlers were seen struggling to pick up wickets while Jaiswal continued to go on his merry way, putting the loose balls away. Halfway through the innings, Royals were 122 for 1.
The next over, Samson deposited the ball in the stands with a massive six at deep mid-wicket and 10 runs came off the 11th over. In the next over, Jaiswal brought up his fourth IPL fifty off 34 deliveries. In the 13th over, Jaiswal’s inning came to an end as he fell to Farooqi while going for big but did not get hold of it and the ball went to Mayank Agarwal at deep mid-wicket.
Very soon, Umran Malik picked up his first as he cleaned up Devdutt Padikkal cheaply for 2, pushing RR to 151/3 14.1 overs. Riyan Parag came to join Samson and did not hold back as he smashed the cut all the way over deep cover for one bounce four.
After his expensive first over, T Natarajan bounced back in the 17th over, dismissing Parag just after the timeout. Then, Shimron Hetmyer came in and started off with a single. The next ball Samson completed his 28-ball fifty with a single.
After Hetmyer picked up the length early and thumped the ball over the deep mid-wicket for a maximum in the mid-wicket, Natarajan got his second in the penultimate over by dismissing Samson, who thet a for a maximum but Abhishek Sharma was there on the edge of the cushions to complete the brilliant catch while juggling his left-foot to not touch the skirting.
With 10 runs coming off the final over, Royals posted a total of 203 for the loss of 5 wickets in 20 overs.
Brief scores: Rajasthan Royals 203/5 in 20 overs (Yashaswi Jaiswal 54 off 37, Jos Buttler 54 off 22 and Sanju Samson 55 off 32; Fazalhaq Farooqi 2/41, T Natarajan 2/23) against Sunrisers Hyderabad
–IANS