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Rajasthan Royals (RR) continued their winning run in the tournament as they registered a convincing win by 23 runs over five-time Indian Premier League (IPL) 2022 champions Mumbai Indians on April 2. Opener Jos Buttler wreaked havoc at Dr DY Patil Sports Academy, Mumbai with the season’s first century. MI put up a spirited fight in the run chase with Ishan Kishan and Tilak Verma scoring half-centuries but losing too many wickets in the death overs cost them. MI’s losing streak continued whereas RR dethroned KKR from the top of the points table.
Early wickets
Royals’ lost two early wickets in the powerplay overs in the form of opener Yashsvi Jaiswal and Devdutt Padikkal. From the other end, Buttler got the scoreboard moving with boundaries to make use of the fielding
restrictions.
Buttler goes big
Sanju Samson provided the support Buttler needed from the other end. The English wicketkeeper-batter toyed with MI bowlers and got to his half-century in the eighth over. Samson pressed his foot on the pedal as well and hit three sixes in his 30-run knock. He lost his wicket to Kieron Pollard just before the death overs. Buttler was batting on 88 when Shimron Hetmyer came in to bat. The West Indies batter was brutal in the death overs as he scored 35 runs from just 14 deliveries. Meanwhile, the RR opener got to his second IPL century in his 300th T20 game. However, Buttler departed after scoring the first century of the season. He scored 100 runs off 68 deliveries including 11 fours and five sixes.
Dull finish
After Buttler's wicket in the penultimate over, Royals could not finish with a flourish as they lost five wickets in a matter of just seven deliveries. RR could not get past the 200-run mark and posted 193/8 after Rohit won the toss and chose to field first.
Kishan, Varma keep MI in hunt
Chasing 194, MI lost Rohit Sharma early in the innings. While Ishan Kishan made full use of the fielding restrictions. MI lost another wicket in the form of Anmolpreet Singh in the fourth over. The 19-year-old Tila Varma stood up to the task and provided the much-needed support to Kishan. The two changed the course of the match in the middle overs. They shared an 81-run partnership for the third wicket. Coming back to bowl, Trent Boult got the major breakthrough in the form of Kishan. Saini took a terrific catch at deep square leg and got injured in the process. The wicketkeeper-batter scored 54 runs from 43 deliveries including five fours and one six.
Ashwin, Chahal turn the game
Varma was the more aggressive too and at one point it looked like that he will guide MI to their first win of the tournament. Just before the death overs, Samson brought back veteran off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin into the attack. Ashwin got the wicket of Varma to derail MI's run chase. The 19-year-old scored his maiden IPL fifty. He contributed 61 runs from 333 deliveries which was laced with three fours and five sixes. After Ashwin's breakthrough, Yuzvendra Chahal pushed MI on the back foot with the wicket of Tim David and Daniel Sams off consecutive deliveries in the 16th over.
Pollard fails to finish
Kieron Pollard struggled to get off the mark and played seven dot deliveries. He gave RR a scare in the end and tried to take as much strike as possible. In the final over, MI needed 29 runs with Pollard on strike. Saini faltered in the beginning with a wide and boundary but followed it up with four dot deliveries as Pollard refused to take a single and give strike to Bumrah. The Caribbean all-rounder got out on the final delivery as MI lost by 23 runs.
