April 11, 2018
Brief Scorecard: Rajasthan Royals 153 for 5 in 17.5 overs (Rahane 45, Samson 37, Nadeem 2-34) beat Delhi Daredevils 60 for 4 in six overs (Pant 20, Morris 17*) by 10 runs via DLS method
April 11, 2018
Brief Scorecard: Rajasthan Royals 153 for 5 in 17.5 overs (Rahane 45, Samson 37, Nadeem 2-34) beat Delhi Daredevils 60 for 4 in six overs (Pant 20, Morris 17*) by 10 runs via DLS method
April 11, 2018: Rajasthan Royals v Delhi Daredevils, IPL 2018, Jaipur – Royals eventually completed a relatively comfortable win on their return to Jaipur, with Ben Laughlin being the pick of the bowlers – he contained the batsmen when it mattered, even while striking twice – BCCI
JAIPUR – Rajasthan Royals returned to their fortress in Jaipur to rain, but managed to squeeze out a win by stifling Delhi Daredevils in a six-over shootout.
Chasing 71, Daredevils could only manage 60 for 4 in greasy conditions at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. In walking away with two points, they also recorded their seventh straight win over Daredevils.
In a game that saw 23.5 overs in total, the two overs bowled by 36-year old Ben Laughlin, who played a key role in Adelaide Strikers' BBL triumph in February, bowled two stellar overs that fetched him as many wickets to effectively seal the contest.
The first of those overs cost just 5 to leave Daredevils needing 42 off the last three. The wickets of Maxwell in the following over effectively sealed the contest. Opening the bowling with possibly a clear mandate of not giving Maxwell a free swing, K Gowtham, the offspinner, and Dhawal Kulkarni, the medium pacer, used their yorkers superbly to cramp and deny him early on.
Pant, promoted to No. 3, was denied any pace on the ball at the other end. This piled on the pressure after Colin Munro ran himself out without facing a ball. The first two Powerplay overs fetched just 15, leaving Daredevils with too much to do.
Earlier in the evening, unusual early summer rains that started four hours before the match abated briefly to allow an on-time start.
Sanju Samson tantalised with some sparkling strokes to make a 22-ball 37, while Jos Buttler and Rahul Tripathi's lower order enterprise allowed Royals a brief surge towards the end. When rain came down, they were 153 for 5, with Buttler having fallen just two balls prior.
Sharp showers relented to allow two scheduled inspections, and hopes of a resumption, but rains returned each time, just before the umpires walked in to assess the nature of the outfield. Rain eventually relented to allow play to resume seven minutes before the cut-off time for a five-over shootout.
Daredevils brought in Shahbaz Nadeem for Amit Mishra, and the left-arm spinner justified his inclusion by overcoming a poor start – he finished with 2 for 34 in four overs after conceded 23 runs in his first two. His wickets, those of the Royals' top-scorers Samson and Ajinkya Rahane, came at a time when the hosts were looking to accelerate.
Rahane had begun the innings by getting involved in another run-out: for the second game in a row, the Australian D'Arcy Short was dismissed by a direct hit. Two overs later, the decision to promote Ben Stokes to No. 3 failed, when Trent Boult had him caught behind with one that jagged away off the pitch to square up the left-hand batsman.
At 28 for 2, Royals were in a little trouble. Samson laced his second delivery to the point boundary and followed up with an incredible short-arm jab over midwicket for six off Boult to ease the pressure.
His surge allowed Rahane to play himself in. Rahane began to step on it by hitting Mohammed Shami for back-to-back fours in the 13th over.
Buttler too began like a bullet train, before a decision to hop across his stumps and scoop Shami over fine leg cost him his wicket. That was when it began to rain, halting play for more than two hours.
The late surge, however, allowed Royals to defend the score they eventually did to win their ninth successive match in Jaipur.
Courtesy/Source: ESPNCricinfo
