With their eighth victory in nine games, the Rajasthan Royals in the 2024 Indian Premier League maintained their winning streak behind half-centuries of Dhruv Jurel and Sanju Samson. In Lucknow, the pair amassed an undefeated 121 runs for the fourth wicket, which enabled the Royals to defeat the Lucknow Super Giants by seven wickets and surpass the total with one over remaining. With this victory, the league’s top team, Royals, enjoy a six-point advantage over the second-place team. However, LSG is still in the top four and is only a hair ahead of Delhi Capitals in terms of Net Run Rate.
The distinction
The Lucknow Super Giants were limited to 196 for 5, unable to capitalize on the century stand between KL Rahul and Deepak Hooda in a departure from the 200-plus run-fests. Even after the game, captain Rahul acknowledged that his team was short by at least 20 runs. Curiously, LSG was able to accelerate most of their innings throughout the middle overs, but they found it difficult to maintain that pace of scoring during the powerplay and the last overs. The final five overs of the innings saw them manage just two boundaries. Rahul scored the team’s lone two sixes during the innings, which was actually quite restricted six-hitting overall. In contrast, RR made nine clearances of the ropes.
Play it safe: RR attack first
LSG: 46/2 [RR: 9.67; 8/0 for 4s/6s]
Trent Boult and Sandeep Sharma each scored once during the powerplay, shattering the stumps; Quinton de Kock was beaten on the outside edge, and Marcus Stoinis on the inside. The Rajasthan Royals put on another impressive display. As KL Rahul tried to save his team from a dismal start, not a single six was struck during one of the less exciting powerplays in recent memory.
Between overs: Rahul and Hooda’s century partnership lifts LSG
LSG: 104/1 [RR: 11.55; 10/2 for 4s and 6s]
Following the loss of two early wickets, KL Rahul and Deepak Hooda’s 115-run partnership for the third wicket turned the tide in favor of LSG. Through the middle overs, the pair scored quickly without relying too much on physical force. Just after reaching his half-century, Hooda fell, becoming R Ashwin’s second victim of the season, while Yuzvendra Chahal went wicketless for the first time this season.
Death overs: LSG is unable to make a late comeback
LSG: 46/2 [RR: 9.20; 2/0 for 4s/6s]
LSG was unable to make the most of their lead even though they had a solid base for the death overs. Only two balls hit the fence in the final five overs, and no six was scored in the death overs due to the ball holding on to a touch and a long boundary to challenge. During this era, Rahul and Nicholas Pooran left without having much of an impact. Despite batting for a while in a 16-ball stand, Krunal Pandya and Ayush Badoni could only muster 23 runs.
Royals of Rajasthan
Powerplay: The openers leave after a swift opening
RR: 60/1 [RR: 10.00; 7/2 for 4s/6s]
In the opening over of the chase, Yashasvi Jaiswal let free, hitting Matt Henry for a six and a four in back-to-back deliveries. As soon as the destructive opening duo gained hold of the game, Jos Buttler joined him in the fray. Within five overs, they had reached the half-century mark. But both of the innings’ openers left after a few deliveries, with the momentum hanging in the balance, following the 36th delivery of the innings.
Samson leads the chase in the midst of the overs.
RR is 84/2. [RR: 9.33; 8/3 for 4s/6s]
The Rajasthan Royals’ scoring rate was restrained for a few overs following the powerplay, as Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag, and eventually Dhruv Jurel took their time getting going early in their innings. But Samson dismissed Amit Mishra, the Impact Substitute, for a boundary and a six in the eleventh over. Soon after, Jurel joined the group and rebelled against Mohsin Khan and Yash Thakur. Getting dropped twice at short third in the 14th over by the former, he got his fair share of bad luck.
Death Overs: Bairstow assumes command
55/0 at the end of 4 overs [RR: 13.75; 4s/6s: 4/4].
With an over remaining, Samson and Jurel defeated the target with minimal effort. The two batsmen reached their individual half-centuries on their way to an undefeated 121-run partnership for the fourth wicket. As the Royals got closer to their target, Samson, who had been Jurel’s second fiddle through the middle overs, assumed control of the attack. In the 16th over, it began with destroying Ravi Bishnoi by slogsweeping the leggie for a six and a boundary before striking him with a ball. Even Thakur and Mohsin were sent on a leather search in the end.
Brief Scores: Rajasthan Royals 199/3 in 19 overs (Sanju Samson 71*, Dhruv Jurel 52*) defeated Lucknow Super Giants 196/5 in 20 overs (KL Rahul 76, Deepak Hooda 50; Sandeep Sharma 2-31) by 7 wickets.
From here, where do they go?
On May 2, the Royals will travel to Hyderabad to take on the SRH, while LSG will remain in Lucknow to play the Mumbai Indians on Tuesday, April 30.
