Well, that'll be all from our side for the day, folks! Stay tuned to
Sportstar to get all the IPL 2020 updates. We will be back tomorrow with the double-headers - DC vs MI and RCB vs SRH. Until then, goodbye and goodnight!
WHAT THEY SAID
Ben Stokes, MoM: I think when you are in a position like we are, you have nothing to lose. We are still hanging in. That is pleasing. The sixes are always pleasing. I went in the same mentality like I did against Mumbai. Wanted to go hard with the new ball. We had a decent break from the last game. We normally have a quick turnaround. I cut down on the bowling part in the break to remain fresh.
Steve Smith, RR captain:
Ebbed and flowed. But would have been great to win a few in the middle. But it is about peaking at the right time. We still need to do our bit. We have different plans as to who goes in after who gets out. Gave [Jos] Buttler a chance to bat at number 5. Nice to get over the line comfortably. Helps the NRR. The last two games, he [Ben Stokes] has been exceptional. Has good innovation. Hits the ball in weird areas. He is a valuable player. One of the best in the world. You are always talking to players and try to get the best of them. Couple of games tomorrow, we will be matching them [KKR] closely and then good to go day after.
KL Rahul, KXIP skipper : It was a horrible toss to lose with the amount of dew later on. It did get very, very easy to bat on. The wrist spinners want the ball to be dry and get some grip off the surface but with the dew it got really difficult. On a sticky wicket, as it was when we batted, this was not a bad total. We didn't bowl badly, but we need to learn to bowl better with the wet ball. The dew has been unpredictable. We spoke to the groundsman, and he said there was no dew last game. You can't prepare for it, but you have to be able to adapt to that. It has been the kind of season where nothing has come easy. We have had to work hard for every point. No surprise that it has come down to the last game."
LIVE COMMENTARY
RR
186/3 in 17.3 overs:
Game. Set. Match. Rajasthan romps home early and quiet comfortably as Buttler goes downtown to hit a humongous maximum! Out of the remaining five runs to get, Jordan himself gifts two off two wides. What is it about IPL 2020? No one at the bottom half of the table is letting things go easy...
RR 175/3 in 17 overs: Smith steps on the gas. You can never count the Aussie out of the fun party, can you? Shami doesn't look half the experienced international he is as Smith is blowing him up to smithereens. First over midoff, then midwicket and then a cheeky scoop towards short fine leg. Buttler joins in and smacks Shami over deep midwicket off the last delivery.
RR 156/3 in 16 overs: Jordan has been Punjab's go-to man at the death, lately. And he has hardly failed to deliver. However, Buttler negates all the good work done by the 32-year-old pacer off the first five deliveries, in the last one as he hoicks one and hoicks big. Smoked over long on!
RR 146/3 in 15 overs: Yes-no-maybe... There's a bit of hesitation as Steve Smith looks to take a quick single and Samson scurrying to the striker's end fall just short of the crease as Suchith does well to nail an accurate throw. Jos Buttler is the new man in. Time for the strategic timeout. Rajasthan needs 40 off 30 balls.
RR 144/2 in 14 overs: Jordan bowls one at Samson's leg and he has flicked this nonchalantly to the ropes at long leg. Or did he? Nup. This one went off his pads and the umpire didn't notice that either. Smith finishes the over with a four down the third man area off a full toss.
RR 132/2 in 13 overs: Ashwin drags the ball back and you can do nothing but sit back and listen to the sweet sound of Samson's bat making contact with the sphere. The six towards deep midwicket is followed by a boundary, that has been cut through point.
RR 119/2 in 12 overs: Smith keeps the tempo of the innings going as he slaps a half-volley from Bishnoi between long-on and deep midwicket for a four. RR needs 67 to win off 48 deliveries.
RR 112/2 in 11 overs: Ashwin, immediately after being punched by Uthappa for a handsome six over deep midwicket, strikes! The former KKR batsman has hit a flatter delivery straight down Pooran's throat near the fence. Skipper Smith comes to crease.
RR 103/1 in 10 overs: The pressure's telling on the bowlers and it shows as Bishnoi starts off with a wide. Samson is on song! He has launched this right into outer space. All the Punjab fielders could do was to watch it sail out of the ground limits. Rajasthan is 22 runs ahead of where KXIP was at the halfway mark.
RR 93/1 in 9 overs: Samson has bludgeoned a length ball from Arshdeep over cow corner for an 85-metre six. He opens the face of his bat to get another boundary off the last ball. This was a yorker but Samson has worked it away, nonetheless. Time for the strategic timeout.
RR 79/1 in 8 overs: Bishnoi keeps things tight in this over as well until Uthappa deals some damage to his economy, having found the gap between the fielders stationed at backward point and short third man, to bring up a four.
RR 71/1 in 7 overs: Ashwin, after being carted all over the park, in his first over, bounces back to keep this one economical with a new batsman at the crease. Just five off it. Will Punjab build on this to strangle Rajasthan further?
RR 66/1 in 6 overs:
Jordan, who has been instrumental in Kings XI's rise from nowhere this season, will look to inflict the fatal blow. Stokes, unafraid, goes after his countryman as well, to tonk his first ball over long-off for a maximum. That brings up his fifty off only 24 balls. Jordan, however, comes back well to take the all-important wicket! He pitches this slower and fuller and Stokes ends up only nudging this straight to Hooda's palms at midoff. Samson, who has just come in, gets a boundary off the last to bid the PowerPlay farewell in style.
RR 54/0 in 5 overs: Rajasthan dealing in boundaries and sending a message to the Punjab bowlers. Stokes carries on with the carnage as he splits extra cover and mid-off to find the boundary. There's no doubt about the fact that Uthappa has reserved the best seat in the stadium, to watch this all happen, for himself! He has faced only seven balls compared to Stokes' 23.
RR 48/0 in 4 overs: Rahul to go for leg-spin and Stokes couldn't care less! The man has picked up from right where he left off the last day against Mumbai Indians - cleanest of reverse sweeps to pick up the first boundary, lift over long on for six and hammered over deep square leg for another maximum.
RR 32/0 in 3 overs: A freebie in the form of a short ball from Arshdeep has been pulled away to glory by Stokes past square leg. He is, however, not done yet and chooses to explore the fine leg region. Four more.
RR 21/0 in 2 overs: Shami's into the attack and off Stokes goes off the very second delivery. It was a bit short and wide and Stokes has crunched this through the offside. Stokes goes for the paddle off the next but misses and ends up hurting himself a bit. Woah! Almost gone. Maxwell, known to be as safe as houses, has spilled one. This was a difficult opportunity, alright, and Maxwell hangs back for a fraction of a second before diving in front and it dips just short of him at mid-on. Oh, and it keeps getting better for the Royals. Uthappa swivels and pulls and the ball has disappeared into the empty stands near fine leg before you could bat an eyelid for a maximum!
RR 9/0 in 1 over: Uthappa and Stokes have been known to come hard at the bowlers early in the PowerPlay. Arshdeep will be wary of that fact and will be ideally mixing it up accordingly. Uthappa gets off the mark with a single off the second delivery. Stokes finishes the over on a high, lifting a fuller delivery over long on for a boundary.
- KL Rahul is assigning field positions. Arshdeep Singh will start things off with the new ball. Robin Uthappa to face the first delivery with Ben Stokes accompanying him at the other end.
RR INNINGS
KXIP 185/4 after 20 overs:
Gayle falls for 99! Archer bowls a vicious yorker to clean the Jamaican hard-hitter up. He is the only batsman in IPL history to have two 99s to his credit. He throws away the bat in frustration. Very unlikely of Gayle to display strong emotions but then again this is the lovely game of cricket, ladies and gentlemen!
KXIP 176/3 after 19 overs: Not Tyagi's day at all. First he goes at Maxwell above the waist. The Australian sneaks it through short fine leg for a boundary and to make matters worse it is a free hit, which results in a dot. Gayle, however, brings up his 1,000th T20 six later dispatching the bowler over midwicket.
KXIP 162/3 after 18 overs: Stokes is doing the magic with the ball tonight! Pooran's gotta go after Tewatia takes an excellent catch near the ropes. Gayle did welcome the England all-rounder with a four and then follow that up with a maximum but Stokes came back well to remove his partner at the non-striker's end.
KXIP 148/2 after 17 overs: There's no stopping Pooran. The Trinidadian gets into the act again - gets under a Tyagi delivery comfortably and muscles it over the man stationed at long-off.
KXIP 137/2 after 16 overs: It doesn't take Pooran much time to settle down and he is off the mark with a six.
Interestingly, that takes him to the top of the 'most number of sixes hit in IPL 2020' list again alongside Samson on 23. Well, scratch that. He has marched ahead of Samson with another biggie off a Free Hit! Into the death overs we head, which will follow the strategic timeout.
KXIP 123/2 after 15 overs: Stokes to bowl his third. We have the breakthrough the Royals needed! Rahul's wait for a fifty continues and it's been four games now. He goes for the slog off a length ball and ends up holing it out to Tewatia at deep midwicket.
KXIP 118/1 after 14 overs: Smith is going for the kill, alright. Gayle averages a lot lesser than 20 against the England speedster and that might just be the idea to bring him down. Rahul hits Archer for a fine boundary first and then a lucky edge off Gayle's bat races away to the ropes.
KXIP 107/1 after 13 overs: Tewatia's back. He is tossing his deliveries up, giving it more air time, to invite Gayle to try and go big. He does. This was a misfire, quite in line with what the plan was but it had enough on it to clear the fence.
KXIP 97/1 after 12 overs: Stokes goes for a run a ball and Gayle and Rahul, who were looking in so fine a touch a few overs ago, are somehow not being able to middle the ball.
KXIP 91/1 after 11 overs: Tewatia is back, to pocket something more than just the dots. The Rajasthan poster boy has been bowling wrong'uns to Gayle and continues to do so this over. However, he bowls a looped one right in his arc later and that has been launched right over the cow corner to bring up the big man's fifty. Another opportunity to send Gayle back to the dugout goes abegging. Mistimed, this hung in the mid-on skies for long but Tewatia, running back, fails to pouch it even as Stokes looked on from close quarters.
KXIP 81/1 after 10 overs: We are already halfway through. What should be an ideal score for Punjab to look forward to? Fuller, just outside off goes Tyagi and bigger, through covers goes Rahul. There's something about the lift through that region that takes your breath away! Tyagi mixes it up well in the remainder of the over to keep it down to only two more singles.
KXIP 73/1 after 9 overs: Rahul and Gayle are not to keen on taking on Tewatia. Only two off that over as RR heaves a sigh of relief.
KXIP 71/1 after 8 overs: Stokes, who has only bowled eight overs before this one in IPL 2020, has been brought into the attack. Lucky escape for Gayle as he nicks a knuckle ball and it rolls wide of Samson and down to the ropes.
KXIP 63/1 after 7 overs: RR's infamous leg-spin will be in action in the next six deliveries. Would be really interesting to see how Gayle decides to go against Gopal. And there, that is precisely what Gayle is known to do against spinners! The fourth delivery of the over has been clobbered over deep midwicket for a maximum. Time for the strategic timeout.
KXIP 53/1 after 6 overs: "Why should Gayle have all the fun?" goes Rahul as he pulls a short ball from Aaron over deep square leg for a maximum. Oh, and he goes again... would have to settle for a boundary this time, though. This was bowled fuller and outside off as Rahul splits mid-wicket and mid-on to get to the ropes.
KXIP 39/1 after 5 overs:
Gayle's playing with the young Kartik Tyagi's mind. Not much to blame, if we are talking about the 19-year-old here. A yorker, a shorter delivery, a fuller one have all been carted in absolute disdain. 14 runs come off that over.
KXIP 25/1 after 4 overs: Aaron is just not getting it right. He has strayed down leg again. The Universe Boss announces himself with a six that just flies wide off Parag at deep square leg. And off the very next ball, the Jamaican has been dropped! Oh, this is just inexcusable. A top edge which hung in the skies for forever before Parag spills it. There was a bit of miscommunication as well, it seems, between the young Assam cricketer and Robin Uthappa who had run down almost 30 yards to get underneath the skier.
KXIP 14/1 after 3 overs:
Rahul wouldn't mind that. Archer offers some width and the Punjab opener has hammered it right through the point region to get a boundary. With that, he reaches the 600-run mark in IPL 2020, as well. The Karnataka batsman is not looking to go on the attack straightaway, even though he maintains a healthy strike rate of 170 against the England pacer.
KXIP 9/1 after 2 overs: Aaron to complement Archer at the other end. The Jharkhand pacer starts off with 2 wides off the first but comes back well to concede no more runs until the last ball, which was supposed to be a bouncer to intimidate Gayle, but even beats the big man by a few metres. Oh, we've more bad news: Aaron has sprayed another down leg side, following which Gayle tees off with a boundary off an underedge down deep fine leg.
KXIP 1/1 after 1 over: We've had a dramatic start! Archer starts off with a pitch-perfect yorker that takes Rahul by surprise. The Punjab skipper only gets off the mark in the penultimate ball of the over. Mandeep, who comes on strike, has been dismissed first ball. Archer hits the deck hard and the batter has this coming up right at his chest. Mandy jumps to get on top of this delivery but an edge lobs to a diving Stokes near point.
- Gone are the days of the pep talk! The Rajasthan Royals look like a happy bunch, with skipper Steve Smith and Ben Stokes imitating a Beyblade-letting-it-rip-like action much to the joy of the youngster Kartik Tyagi. Punjab openers KL Rahul and Mandeep Singh will face Jofra Archer in the first over.
KXIP INNINGS
PLAYING XI
Kings XI Punjab :
KL Rahul (w/c), Mandeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Nicholas Pooran, Glenn Maxwell, Deepak Hooda, Chris Jordan, Murugan Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami, Arshdeep Singh
Rajasthan Royals :
Robin Uthappa, Ben Stokes, Steve Smith (c), Sanju Samson (w), Jos Buttler, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Jofra Archer, Shreyas Gopal, Varun Aaron, Kartik Tyagi
WHAT THEY SAID
KL Rahul, KXIP skipper : I would've looked to bowl as well, but looks like a good wicket, so should remain the same for 40 overs. It's just everything coming together, the last four or five games, we've come really well. It's good to see and it's been a complete team effort. We would look to go out there and enjoy ourselves.
Same team.
Steve Smith, RR captain
: We will bowl. Don't know what happens here with the dew, so we are gonna chase tonight. It's been a bit of up and down tournament for us.
Varun Aaron is in.
TOSS
PITCH REPORT
MATCH PREVIEW BY
P. K. AJITH KUMAR
This is a tough week for the players at the Indian Premier League 2020. The race for the playoffs is hotting up and out of the eight teams, only one is out of contention.
Rajasthan Royals will be desperate to win against Kings XI Punjab in Abu Dhabi on Friday.
Kings XI, placed fourth with 12 points, will be keen on maintaining the winning streak. On 10 points currently, if Royals lose the rubber they will be out of the playoffs race.
READ|
Steve Smith's men must be hoping their strength – batting – fires once again at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium. Pace spearhead Jofra Archer, who has been firing with the new ball and choking the opposition at death, will need support from the other bowlers.
Though the leg-spinning duo of Shreyas Gopal and Rahul Tewatia and young seamer Kartik Tyagi have done reasonably well, they have not been consistent. The third seamer – be it Jaydev Unadkat or Ankit Rajpoot – has disappointed even more. It's a mystery why the team management isn't considering Varun Aaron. He is genuinely quick and is a seasoned campaigner.
After the poor show by the bowlers, it was the batsmen that gave Royals the badly-needed victory against Mumbai Indians last Sunday. The services of Jos Buttler, the team's most accomplished batsman against the white ball, were not even required, as Ben Stokes, opening the innings, and Sanju Samson, put on 152 for the unbroken third-wicket off just 82 balls.
READ|
Kings XI is extremely strong in the batting department, too. Captain K.L. Rahul is leading the table with 595 runs. His opening partner Mayank Agarwal is seventh on the list with 398, though he didn't play the last two matches, owing to injury. Mandeep Singh stepped into Mayank's role with ease and made an unbeaten 66 to help the side beat Kolkata Knight Riders.
The bowling has looked increasingly sharper, with India pacer Mohammed Shami looking in fabulous form and the young left-arm seamer Arshdeep Singh making rapid strides. Leg-spinners Ravi Bishnoi and M. Ashwin have played their parts too.
WATCH EPISODE 6 OF OUR NEWEST SERIES
T20 TIME FEATURING CHETESHWAR PUJARA
HEAD-TO-HEAD RECORD
The two teams have faced each other 20 times in the IPL so far, and Rajasthan holds a 11-9 head-to-head win-loss record over Punjab.
READ |
KXIP (223/2 in 20 overs) lost to RR (226/6 in 19.3 overs) by 6 wickets
Earlier in IPL 2020, RR beat KXIP by four wickets in the United Arab Emirates on the back of Sanju Samson's 42-ball 85 and half-centuries from Rahul Tewatia and Steve Smith. Kings XI opener Mayank Agarwal had scored 106 off 50 balls in Sharjah back then, while Mohammed Shami took a three-wicket haul against the Royals.
Position on the Points Table
Punjab currently occupies the fourth position in the 2020 IPL points table with 12 points from 12 outings, which include six wins and six losses. Meanwhile, Rajasthan is placed seventh in the standings with ten points, having won five games and lost seven.
IPL 2020 Form Guide
KXIP has five wins from its last five matches
RR has two victories from its last five games
Overall, the Royals have won the IPL trophy once during the inaugural season and made the playoffs in three other seasons. Meanwhile, Kings XI have reached only one summit clash in 2014 and qualified for the playoffs just one other instance in 2008.
THE BEST PERFORMERS THIS SEASON (FROM KXIP and RR)
Most runs
1) K. L. Rahul (KXIP) - 595
2) Mayank Agarwal (KXIP) - 398
3) Nicholas Pooran (KXIP) - 329
4) Sanju Samson (RR) - 326
5) Steve Smith (RR) - 276
Most Wickets
1) Mohammed Shami (KXIP) - 20
2) Jofra Archer (RR) - 17
3) Ravi Bishnoi (KXIP) - 12
4) Shreyas Gopal (RR) - 9
5) Murugan Ashwin (KXIP) - 9
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ALSO READ | Sharjah to host Women's T20 Challenge fixtures
PREDICTED XI
KXIP: KL Rahul (c/w), Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Mandeep Singh, Nicholas Pooran, Glenn Maxwell, Chris Jordan, Murugan Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Arshdeep Singh, Mohammad Shami
RR: Robin Uthappa, Ben Stokes, Steve Smith (c), Sanju Samson (w), Jos Buttler, Riyan Parag, Rahul Tewatia, Jofra Archer, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Kartik Tyagi
TOP FIVE PLAYERS WITH MOST POINTS IN FANTASY SQUADS
1. Jofra Archer (RR) - 266.5 points
2. KL Rahul (KXIP) - 222.5 points
3. Rahul Tewatia (RR) - 203.5 points
4. Mohammad Shami (KXIP) - 197 points
5. Mayank Agarwal (KXIP) - 165 points
WATCH | Sportstar Extras, IPL Special: CSK ruined a chance for Morgan's men to lay a claim on a playoff spot. Meanwhile, two other contenders take each other on in a direct fight for that fourth place spot on the table.
NUMBER-CRUNCHING
- Highest run-getter: KL Rahul (595)
- Highest wicket-taker: Kagiso Rabada (23)
- Highest individual score: KL Rahul (132*)
- Best bowling figures: Varun Chakravarthy (5/20)
- Best economy: Rashid Khan (5.00)
- Most fours: KL Rahul and Shikhar Dhawan (52)
- Most sixes: Sanju Samson (23)
- Fastest ball: Anrich Nortje (156.22 kmph)
- Longest six: Nicholas Pooran (106m)
- Fastest fifty: Nicholas Pooran (17 balls)
- Fastest century: Mayank Agarwal (45 balls)
LISTEN IN | In E07 of this IPL special podcast, Shayan Acharya, Wriddhaayan Bhattacharyya and Vijay Lokapally discuss the biggest talking points surrounding the Indian squads that will tour Australia later this year, a tight competition for the top four and what Chennai Super Kings' exit from the IPL this season means for the side.
IPL 2020 Points Table
WHERE TO WATCH IPL 2020 - KINGS XI PUNJAB VS RAJASTHAN ROYALS LIVE?
The Indian Premier League match Kings XI Punjab vs Rajasthan Royals will be broadcast live on
the
Star Sports Network. Live streaming will also be available on the
Hotstar app or website exclusively for VIP and Premium users.
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