Rajasthan Royals jumped towards the top of the IPL 2023 points table with a thrilling three-run win over Chennai Super Kings on Wednesday.
While a fifty from Jos Buttler had taken RR to 175/8, MS Dhoni’s heroics with the bat went in vain despite a 17-ball 32 for his CSK outfit.
The win was Rajasthan’s third in four games this season, with their only loss this season coming against Punjab Kings.
Let’s now take a look at five top moments from the game:
All-round Ashwin
He is sure to create a lasting legacy on the cricket field, and Ravichandran Ashwin sure did put up a clinical effort with both bat and ball.
Ashwin, who scored 30 off 22 deliveries, was involved in a 47-run stand with Jos Buttler for the fourth wicket, and that partnership played a huge role in RR posting 175/8.
Then, with the ball, the Tamil Nadu cricketer returned with figures of 2/25, picking up wickets of Ajinkya Rahane and Shivam Dube.
Ashwin was eventually adjudged Player of the Match.
Jos Buttler scores fifty
England’s Jos Buttler stood out from the other batters for Rajasthan Royals. He scored a match-winning half-century, apart from vital knocks from Shimron Hetmyer (30*) and R Ashwin (30), but Buttler created a huge impact on the team with his knock.
Buttler was involved with a 77-run stand with Devdutt Padikkal for the second wicket, and his knock set the platform for RR to post a challenging total.
This was Buttler’s third fifty in four innings.
Vintage MS Dhoni
MS Dhoni led a late CSK charge along with Ravindra Jadeja, along with whom he forged a 59-run unbeaten stand, and Dhoni had gone full aggressive towards the end of the innings.
Dhoni had been criticised last season for his low strike rates at times, but on Wednesday, he amassed 32 off just 17 balls, with a four and three sixes.
CSK needed 21 runs to win from the final over, and Sandeep Sharma was given the responsibility with the ball.
Two wides meant that the deficit was now 19 off five balls, and a couple of maximums from Dhoni meant CSK needed just seven off three balls.
However, a fairytale finish was not meant to be for CSK as Sandeep bowled three yorkers, just giving CSK a run each from those three balls, and the bowler had held his nerve to help RR beat CSK in the end.
An off day for Gaikwad
Ruturaj Gaikwad so so far had a productive IPL season to say the least, but Wednesday just did not seem to be his day.
Gaikwad came into this contest on the back of scores of of 92, 57 and 40*,but all he could manage on Wednesday were eight runs.
In the first over of the innings, Gaikwad had flicked Sandeep Sharma past short fine leg for a boundary, but found the going tough and eventually was dismissed by the same bowler in the third over.
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