IPL: Rajasthan Royals pip Mumbai Indians in last-over thriller
SUMMARY: Rajasthan Royals 168-7 (Samson 52, Stokes 40, Gowtham 33*, Hardik 2-25, Bumrah 2-28) beat Mumbai Indians 167-7 (Suryakumar 72, Kishan 58, Archer 3-22, Kulkarni 2-32) by three wickets.
In yet another last-over thriller in VIVO IPL 2018, the Rajasthan Royals defeated the Mumbai Indians by three wickets at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Sunday night.
The platform for the chase of 168 was set by a partnership between Sanju Samson (52) and Ben Stokes (40), after which K Gowtham (33* off 11) polished off the chase with a cameo – the all-rounder striking a massive hit over midwicket to take his team home with two balls to spare.
Earlier in the evening, MI opted to bat first and posted a competitive 167-7 riding on the back of half-centuries from Suryakumar Yadav (72) and Ishan Kishan (58).
MI lost the opener Evin Lewis to the fourth ball of the match, but Yadav and Kishan snatched the initiative back and put their team on firm footing with a 129-run partnership. But after both the set batsmen were dismissed within five runs of each other and in the space of six balls, RR pulled things back in spectacular fashion.
Ajinkya Rahane threw the stumps at the non-striker’s end with a sensational left-handed effort to catch his opposite number Rohit Sharma short of the crease, and Jofra Archer picked up three wickets in one over to deny the visitors any momentum towards the end.
MI, 43-1 in the powerplay, added 92-1 in the middle overs, but could only add 32 runs (for the loss of five wickets) in the back end.
Standout bowling performance
Jofra Archer made an instant impression in his first appearance in the IPL. The Barbados-born all-rounder executed change of pace brilliantly; he tested batsmen with speeds in the late 140s regularly, but was also able to get the ball down to speeds under 120. The 23-year old also delivered his yorkers at good pace, and had a memorable debut, returning figures of 4-0-22-3.
