RR vs CSK: Ravi Ashwin’s timely cameo helps Rajasthan Royals book top-two spot in IPL 2022
India Today
Rajasthan Royals (RR), led by Sanju Samson, will now face the Gujarat Titans (GT) in the Qualifier 1 at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
Rajasthan Royals (RR), on Friday, May 20, defeated Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 5 wickets at the Brabourne Stadium in Mumbai. The victory also made sure that Sanju Samson and Co. booked their berth in Qualifier 1 alongside Hardik Pandya’s Gujarat Titans (GT).
The Super Kings didn’t get off to a best of starts as Trent Boult got rid of the dangerous Ruturaj Gaikwad. But from there on, Moeen Ali threw the kitchen sink at everything and notched the second-fastest fifty by a CSK batter off a mere 19 balls.
The left-hander made sure that the Super Kings racked up 75 runs in the powerplay. However, the Yellow Army completely lost the plot as they scored only 75 runs in the last 14 overs at under a run-a-ball. Barring Moeen, who scored 93 off 57 with 13 fours and a six, none of the CSK batters could make an impact.
Dhoni scored 26 runs off 28 balls with one four and one six, but could never up the ante. His knock came to an end after Yuzvendra Chahal got rid of him. Narayan Jagadeesan and Ambati Rayudu, who replaced Shivam Dube in the playing XI, failed to get into double digits.
Obed McCoy was the standout RR bowler as he picked up two crucial wickets of Moeen Ali and Jagadeesan and conceded 20 runs in four overs. Chahal also accounted for two scalps.
The Royals got off to a terrible start after Jos Buttler, the Orange Cap holder of IPL 2022, perished in the second over. Simarjeet Singh induced a false stroke from him. The left-handed Yashasvi Jaiswal showed a lot of maturity and got to his half-century off 39 balls.
He got out to spinner Prashant Solanki in the 15th over. Sanju Samson and Devdutt Padikkal fell cheaply as the Royals strained to score in the middle overs. But the decision to promote Ravi Ashwin paid dividends big time. He stayed unbeaten on 40 runs off 23 balls with two fours and three sixes.
