Sanju Samson and the Rajasthan Royals' (RR) think tank made an interesting decision to begin their run chase against Punjab Kings (PBKS). Veteran spinner, who is no mug with the bat, Ravichandran Ashiwn was promoted to the top of the order and he opened the innings alongside Yashasvi Jaiswal. The decision to promote Ashwin backfired as the right-handed batter registered a four-ball duck. After the game, RR captain Samson explained the reason behind sending Ashwin to open the innings.
"I think it was a really good track to bat on, especially in the Powerplay. There was not much movement. Their batsmen came with a really positive mindset and their momentum carried on with that. Our bowlers tried varying their lengths and speed," Samson said in the post-match presentation ceremony.
"It's a high-scoring venue but we did a reasonably good job pulling them back after the Powerplay start they got. (On promoting Ashwin) Jos (Buttler) was not fit. He was getting stitches for his finger after the catch. The thinking was with Padikkal, they have two spinners, a left-arm and a leggie, and we wanted a lefty out there in the middle overs," he added.
PBKS prevailed over RR in a closely-fought contest and registered a thrilling five-run victory at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati. After the win, Shikhar Dhawan's team rose to second place in the points table with two wins in as many games played.
Chasing a daunting target of 198 runs, none of the RR batters could convert their starts into a big score. Samson was the top scorer ((42 runs off 25 balls) while Shimron Hetmyer (36 runs off 18 balls) and Dhruv Jurel (32 runs off 15 balls) tried to take the Royals home but couldn't finish the job.
Samson lauded young right-handed batter Jurel, who walked in as an Impact Player and almost won Rajasthan the game.
"It's really a pleasure. He has been with us for the last two seasons. Lots and lots of work has gone behind him. We all are really happy. When you come to the IPL, it's a one-week camp before the IPL starts but these guys put in 5 weeks of work coming to our academy facing thousands of balls. We're happy to have a batsman like that in our team," Samson added.
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