Key Baneya

  • Kings XI Punjab got their first win at Indore by beating Rajasthan Royals by 6 wickets
  • Mujeeb Ur Rahman finished with his IPL career best figures of 3 for 27
  • Lokesh Rahul scored his highest IPL score yet, an unbeaten innings of 84
Photo credit: BCCI/IPLT20.com

Kings XI Punjab bagged their first win at their second home venue of Indore on Sunday as they defeated Rajasthan Royals by 6 wickets at the Holkar Cricket Stadium. Mujeeb Ur Rahman took 3 wickets in his 4 over spell and Lokesh Rahul scored a masterful half century in the team’s cause. 🏏 SCORECARD

Opting to field first on a pitch where the chasing team had won each and every game, captain Ravichandran Ashwin got the Kings off to an ideal start. He picked up the wicket of D’Arcy Short in his very first over to land a big blow on the Royals. 📷 PHOTOS

Rajasthan skipper Ajinkya Rahane’s efforts to consolidate the innings weren’t allowed any success either as Chris Gayle pouched a brilliant catch diving forward at backward point off the bowling of Axar Patel.

The Royals made another recovery effort from there through Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes but that too ran into the guile of mystery spinner Mujeeb Ur Rahman. After Mayank Agarwal pulled off a ripper to dismiss Ben Stokes, Mujeeb first dismissed Buttler caught behind and then cleaned up Jofra Archer in his last over to finish with his best IPL figures so far of 4-0-27-3.

Unha-da Sher
Jos Buttler was the lone fighter in the Rajasthan Royals batting order, scoring a fighting fifty. His knock was punctuated by 7 fours and was responsible for getting Rajasthan to a decent total after a batting collapse in the middle overs.

Shreyas Gopal hit a few big blows in the end to give a good finish to the Rajasthan innings and ensure that they went beyond the 150-run mark. They ended their innings with 152 runs on the board with the loss of 9 wickets.

Chasing a modest score, Lokesh Rahul dismissed spinner Krishnappa Gowtham for three boundaries in his second over to set up a good chase. But Rajasthan’s dangerman Jofra Archer struck in the next over and sent back Chris Gayle, ensuring that the Kings’ openers did not build a strong foundation this time around.

Sadda Sher
Lokesh Rahul played another beautiful innings and held the Kings XI Punjab batting together to bring in a modest chase that could have gotten tough. He scored an unbeaten 84 with 7 fours and 3 sixes.

Mayank Agarwal didn’t have a good outing either, being dismissed for just 2 while going for a pull off the bowling of Stokes. The two quick wickets put the Kings in a spot of bother but a 50-run partnership between Rahul and Karun Nair brought the hopes of KXIP back up.

Nair and Axar Patel’s dismissals in quick succession put the pressure back on the Kings as the required rate started to climb. However, Rahul and Stoinis ensured that things were smooth sailing from there.

Turning Point
In a tricky run chase, the match was evenly poised with Stoinis and Rahul at the crease and 43 required off 24 balls. But Rahul made sure the chase didn’t get too close by taking Archer for 16 runs in the 17th over. He rode the momentum for there to seal the win.

Rahul took his innings into the next gear and took Jofra Archer for 16 runs in the 17th over making things easy for the Kings. He eventually finished on 84 and took the Kings to victory with 6 wickets left.

Key Chalda Hai?

Kings XI Punjab are inching upward now as they have 12 points from 9 games and are in the third spot on the leaderboard. They will face Rajasthan Royals again on Tuesday, 8th May in an away match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur.