(IPL) 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 last night. The platform for the chase of 168 was set by a partnership between Sanju Samson and Ben Stokes, after which K Gowtham polished off the chase with a cameo – the all-rounder striking a massive hit over midwicket to take his team home with 2 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 and Ishan Kishan. 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 5 wickets) in the back end.
Sanju Samson was impressive yet again – this time scoring 52 from 39 balls – which earned him back the Orange Cap. As with any of his big innings, there were several delightful strokes, but in this particular knock, Samson’s application stood out – until he actually gave his wicket away at a crucial juncture. The young lad from Kerala appeared to be unmindful of the fast-climbing required rate, kept his head down a
