IPL 2024, RR vs GT: Rashid Khan’s all-round hand trumps Sanju Samson-Riyan Parag Partnership; Gujarat Titans win. Top takeaways for Rajasthan Royals and Gujarat Titans from the match.
Brief Scores: RR 196/3 (Riyan Parag 76, Sanju Samson 68*, Rashid Khan 1/18) lost to GT 199/7 (Shubman Gill 72, Sudarshan 35, Kuldeep Sen 3/41) by 3 wickets.
Player of the Match: Rashid Khan (24* & 1-18)
The only undefeated team in the IPL 2024, Rajasthan Royals (RR) led by Sanju Samson, hosted a seemingly under-confident Gujarat Titans (GT), who have their share of concerns. In a last-ball thriller, GT emerged victorious by 3 wickets, giving the home team their first defeat of the season.
With the hope of gaining something off the pitch, thanks to the rain before the commencement of the game, GT opted to field first. However, the pair of Sanju Samson and Riyan Parag took the pitch out of the equation, enabling the Royals to post a huge total of 196/3.
Chasing a massive target, GT broke their losing streak, thanks to a sublime captain’s knock by Shubman Gill followed by a strong finish by the pair of Rashid Khan & Rahul Tewatia.
Key Takeaways from RR vs GT Match 24, IPL 2024- Losing Team (RR)
Yashasvi Jaiswal’s form puts a lot of pressure on the middle & lower-order
If there is any India batter who has disappointed big time this IPL, it has to be Yashasvi Jaiswal. The left-hander has scored just 39 runs in the four innings before this and couldn’t do much in this game as well. Jaiswal started strongly stroking eye-catching boundaries, only to be dismissed for 24.
His early exit in all these games has exerted pressure on the Royals’ middle-order. They are having to come bat earlier than their liking. Also, stroke makers like skipper Samson or Riyan Parag had to curb their instincts in order to preserve their wickets. RR would hope that the young opener brings back his beast form from last season and further strengthens the team by scoring a huge chunk of runs.
Read More: IPL 2024, RR vs RCB: Buttler, Samson shoulder successful chase for RR; Kohli’s ton goes in vain
Parag-Sanju living up to the expectations
One of the reasons for RR’s consistent run in this IPL season must be the batting form of their middle order, especially that of Sanju Samson & Riyan Parag. Before this game, both had scored two half-centuries each in the campaign and played a key role in RR’s unbeaten run till now.
Yet again, today in Jaipur, the Samson-Parag pair put on a show (130-run stand) that enabled RR to recover from their powerplay jitters and post a competitive total. They scored yet another half-century each, propelling the home side close to 200. With their spectacular run of form, both these batters storm to the top-3 in the orange cap list only behind Virat Kohli.
Read More: IPL 2024, MI vs RR: Parag carries RR to victory after MI batters falter in first innings
Key Takeaways from RR vs GT Match 24, IPL 2024- Winning Team (GT)
Middle order looks very thin in absence of Kane Williamson and David Miller
If the Titans had not suffered enough with few off-field decisions and injury concerns, before the season even began, the former IPL champion’s campaign has been jolted with further injury woes. While senior batter David Miller’s hamstring niggle kept him out for the third time in a row, Kane Williamson didn’t feature owing to indifferent form.
As a result, the GT batting line-up looked brittle and thin with little experience in the middle-order. In the absence of these stars, GT had to stack up their middle order with the likes of Abhinav Manohar, Vijay Shankar, and Shahrukh Khan, all of whom failed to put up a good show.
Yes, they found a way to win the game with the help of Gill’s responsible knock and masterful finishing at the end by Tewatiya & Rashid. But, they have plenty to ponder concerning their middle order.
Read More: IPL 2024, LSG vs GT: Thakur-Pandya combined 8-41 cripples GT; LSG secure third win & move to no. 3
Statistical highlights from game 24, RR vs GT
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Representing the Royals, South Africa spinner Keshav Maharaj made his IPL debut.
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Sanju Samson who blasted a 38-ball 68, scored only 5 runs off 6 deliveries against Rashid Khan. In all of the T20s, the Royals’s skipper has amassed 116 runs off 102 balls he has faced against the leg-spinner.
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Shubman Gill completed 4000 runs in T20 cricket in this game and he took 129 innings to achieve the same.
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Riyan Parag brought up his fifth IPL half-century and three of them came in the last 5 innings that he batted.
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This was Yuzvendra Chahal’s 150th game in his IPL career and became the 26th player to achieve this feat.
Points Table Scenario and what’s next
Despite the defeat, Rajasthan stay foot at the top of the points table with four wins in five games and they next face Punjab Kings at Mohali on April 13.
GT, with this win, have brought their campaign back on track. They move to the sixth position by virtue of their three wins, with Delhi Capitals being their next opponents.
Up next, the Mumbai Indians (MI) will host Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the Wankhede Stadium on April 11, Thursday.
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Top Twitter Reactions from RR vs GT, Jaipur, IPL 2024
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