*PBKS VS RR REVIEW- MATCH 66*
*LOWER ORDER RUNS TO THE RESCUE FOR PUNJAB:*
Punjab were rocked early batting first as Boult accounted for yet another first over wicket. As Prabhsimran departed, out came Taide. The left handed batter played a few glorious shots only to mistime a short ball from Navdeep Saini, who was making a comeback. Dhawan departed soon after, failing to connect the sweep off Australian leggie Adam Zampa. Things turned from bad to worse soon for the home side as Livingstone trying to heave one off Navdeep, was sent back to the dugout. Things looked glum for Dhawan and co but this is exactly when a game changing partnership from Jitesh and vice captain Sam Curran came and smoked some momentum into Punjab’s favour. Though Jitesh could not finish the job, Sam was partnered duly by Shahrukh Khan who played a power packed knock of 46 off 23, and stamped his authority at one of the most picturesque grounds in India. These three, with their more than handy contributions, were key in pushing forward PBKS’s case for the playoffs as they recorded 187 on board. Navdeep was the pick of the bowlers with a three fer to his name but was a tad expensive as well. Zampa, however, was the real star with the bowl giving away just 26 runs in his entire quota and packing Dhawan’s bag with a beaut of a leg spin delivery.
*CONTRIBUTIONS FROM TOP TO BOTTOM HAND RR THEIR 7th WIN OF THE SEASON:*
Buttler, the English skipper, experiencing a horrid run in the second half of the IPL, was trapped in front by a booming leg cutter from Rabada. His nightmare continued as he recorded his fifth duck of the tournament. But this was not enough to stop Jaiswal and Padikkal to make merry of the good batting conditions at hand as the two batted freely and kept the run rate in check. Though there were a few mistimed shots, they were well rewarded for their bravery and the right intent to win the game. Both the lefties were instrumental in setting a strong base for RR as they went past the fifty run mark. The first to fall out of the two, was Padikkal and the skipper of the side followed suit. Out came Hetmyer and RR were back to dominating the chase again. But a wicket against the run of play, with Jaiswal trying to reverse sweep off Ellis, is what added spice another time to this game.
Now with an out of form player Parag batting and a Caribbean who has blown hot and cold throughout, RR’s chances looked slim but a Hetmyer special coupled with two sixes from Parag made life easier in the RR dugout. When Parag was dismissed, Jurel walked out to bat with the same intent as the youngster and with Rahul Chahar bowling the final over, the sensation found his groove and finished the game with a big six down the ground.