Rajasthan Royals scored a seven-wicket victory over Kings XI Punjab in the 50th Dream 11 IPL match in Abu Dhabi on October 30 night.

KXIP firebrand Chris Gayle’s powerful 99 (63 balls), which gave Punjab to a formidable total of 185/4, went in vain as RR made four successful partnerships to chase the target. His 120-run second-wicket partnership with skipper KL Rahul (46 off 41) was the cornerstone of Punjab’s total.

Gayle reached his half-century off 28 balls. KXIP had an early blow when Jofra Archer dismissed opening batsman Mandeep Singh striking in his first over.

RR’s chase saw Ben Stokes giving a good start with a half century that put 60 runs on the board before the team lost their first wicket to Chris Jordan. Sanju Samson (48 off 25) added 51 with Robin Uthappa, and 34 with captain Steve Smith (31 off 20) before he was run out. Jos Buttler gave the finishing touches for the victory with an unbeaten 41-run stand with Smith. Chris Jordan bowled a wide which sealed the RR win.

Stokes was declared Man of the Match (2/32 and 50 off 26).Rajasthan has a slim chance of qualifying to the last four with this win. At No. 4 on the table, Punjab’s chances are unaffected by the loss (12 points from 13 matches).

Chris Gayle was fined 10% of his match fee for beaching IPL’s Code of Conduct when he threw his bat in frustration after being dismissed for 99 by Jofra Archer.

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An unbeaten innings by Manish Pandey and Vijay Shankar helped Sunrisers Hyderabad register an eight-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals in the October 22 match in Dubai.

SRH won the toss and elected to field first. West Indies Test captain Jason Holder registered his best IPL bowling figures – 3/33 – to restrict Rajasthan Royals to 154 for 6 in 20 overs.

Playing his first match of the season, Holder dismissed Sanju Samson (36) and then skipper Steve Smith (19) and Riyan Parag (20) on consecutive deliveries. He also got Robin Uthappa (19) run out in the fourth over. From 74 for one after 10 overs, Royals slumped to a total that was about 15-20 runs short.

Pursuing a 155-run target, Pandey (83* off 47 balls, four fours, eight sixes) and Vijay Shankar (52*, four fours) stitched a 140-run third wicket partnership to cross the total with 11 balls to spare. Shankar’s bowling was top class too, yielding just 15 runs in his three overs and grabbing the wicket of Jos Buttler (9). Rashid Khan (1/20) took the wicket of Ben Stokes (30).

Sunrisers had a disastrous start with Jofra Archer felling openers David Warner (4) and Jonny Bairstow (10). Hyderabad was down 16 for two in two overs till the rescue act came from Pandey and Shankar.

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Delhi Capitals had an impressive 13-run win over Rajasthan Royals at the Indian Premier League match in Dubai on October 14, which has now taken the former to the top of the points table with 12 points from eight matches.

Delhi Capitals captain Shreyas Iyer won the toss and opted to bat first. Jofra Archer’s brilliant bowling (3/19) ensured Delhi could manage only 161 for 7. Shikhar Dhawan (57 off 33 balls) and Shreyas Iyer (53 off 43) had an 85-run stand that helped build the DC innings.

The Delhi total seemed within Rajasthan’s reach as Jos Buttler (22 runs off 9 balls) and Ben Stokes (41 off 35) shared a 37-run first wicket partnership. Stokes was later assisted by Sanju Samson (25 off 18), but after their wickets fell, RR had a tougher task ahead.

Delhi bowlers showed their class in defending the modest total. Kagiso Rabada, Anrich Norje, and Tushar Deshpande held their nerves and played brilliantly giving away only 25 runs in the last five overs. In fact, RR lost a match from a winning position.

South African fast bowler Anrich Nortje, who won the Man of the Match award, has been a valuable addition for DC. He has picked 10 wickets from six matches so far. In match 30, Nortje created an IPL record when he bowled the fastest ball ever, at 156.2 km/hr, in the tournament’s history. He broke his own record off 155.21 km/hr. Nortje’s record fastest delivery sent back Royals opener Jos Buttler for 22.

But on being asked about his record-breaking delivery, Nortje was surprised and said that he was “hearing it for the first time”.

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Rajasthan Royals won against Sunrisers Hyderabad by five wickets in an exciting match in Dubai on October 11. Royals now have three wins from their seven matches.

The first game of the day saw an 85-run sixth wicket partnership between Riyan Parag and Rahul Tewatia that clinched the match for RR. Parag took 42 off 26 balls played the winning shot – a six with one ball remaining – while Tewatia who smashed 45 off 28 balls won the man of the match award. Tewatia turned the match in Rajasthan’s favour by hitting Rashid Khan for three successive fours in the 18th over. They finished the game with a score of 163/5.

Chasing 159 on a slow wicket, Royals did not seem to have much chance after they lost Ben Stokes, Steve Smith and Jos Buttler with just 26 runs on the board. It then recovered from 78-5 to chase down Hyderabad’s 158-4 claiming victory from the jaws of defeat.

Parag, 18, who hails from Assam, celebrated with an impromptu ‘bihu’ jig as he hit the winning shot. Bihu is a traditional dance from Assam.

RR had made three changes to their playing XI – Ben Stokes, Riyan Parag and Robin Uthappa replaced Andrew Tye, Yashashwi Jaiswal and Mahipal Lomror. Sanju Samson playing his 100th IPL match scored 26 off 25 balls and took a brilliant catch.

Earlier, Sunrisers had won the toss and decided to bat. Captain David Warner scored 48 off 38 balls. Manish Pandey was the top-scorer with 54 off 44 deliveries, which was his 17th half century in IPL. Kane Williamson remained unbeaten on 22.

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Delhi Capitals inflicted a 46-run defeat on Rajasthan Royals at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on October 8 in Match 23 of the Dream 11 IPL season currently staged in the UAE. Delhi now top the points table with 10 points.

Between them, DC bowlers Kagiso Rabada, Ravichandran Ashwin and Marcus Stoinis shared seven wickets as they bowled out Rajasthan for 138. Ashwin’s two wickets for 22 runs earned him the Man of the Match.

Delhi’s batting performance at 184/8 was disappointing too, save for Stoinis (39 off 30 balls) and Shimron Hetmyer (45 off 24). Among Rajasthan bowlers, Jofra Archer took three wickets.

Batting second, Rajasthan suffered their fourth straight loss despite the efforts of Rahul Tewatia (38) and Steve Smith (24). Good bowling and fielding helped DC win comfortably. Hetmyer and Shikhar Dhawan netted some brilliant catches.

Dhoni’s daughter receive rape threats

Meanwhile, in a disturbing development, Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s five-year-old daughter Ziva received rape threats from social media trolls following Chennai Super Kings’ loss to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 10 runs on October 6. The incident has been condemned by women leaders and organisations in particular, who decried the misuse of social media platforms and the rape culture permeating the country.

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Mumbai Indians registered their fourth successive victory in IPL 2020, in Abu Dhabi on October 6 as they inflicted a 57-run defeat on Rajasthan Royals.

MI won the toss and elected to bat. Player of the match Suryakumar Yadav hit an unbeaten 79 off 47 balls to give Mumbai Indians an imposing total of 193/4 in 20 overs. He was ably supported by captain Rohit Sharma (35 off 23 balls) and Hardik Pandya (30 not out off 19 balls).

Chasing the Mumbai total, Rajasthan lost three top-order batsmen in quick succession; while Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sanju Samson were out for a duck on Trent Boult’s fiery bowling, captain Steve Smith was felled by Jasprit Bumrah. Only Jos Buttler (70 off 44 balls) carried the fight for the Royals, slamming five sixes and four boundaries.

Jasprit Bumrah took four wickets while James Pattinson and Trent Boult picked two wickets each. Mumbai, which bowled out RR for 137, were also helped by two sensational catches – of the wickets of Mahipal Lomror and Jofra Archer by substitute Anukul Roy and Kieron Pollard respectively.

Rajasthan Royals which had picked up two wins in the first two games of IPL 2020 lost the next two against Kolkata Knight Riders and Royal Challengers Bangalore. RR’s strength is its top-order and its middle-order appears to be struggling.

RR could gain from the arrival of England all-rounder Ben Stokes, who missed the opening matches of this season because of personal reasons. Stokes reached the UAE on October 4, but did not play in the match against Mumbai Indians owing to COVID-19 protocols. Stokes has to undergo six days of isolation before he can join his Royals teammates on October 11 probably. He has to undergo COVID-19 test on Days 1, 3 and 6, and will be allowed if all the tests are negative.

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Match 12 at Dubai cricket stadium on September 30 saw Kolkata Knight Riders beat Rajasthan Royals by 37 runs. This was KKR’s second win in the season while Royals tasted their first loss.

RR captain Steve Smith won the toss and sent Dinesh Karthik’s KKR to bat. Vice-captain Eoin Morgan took KKR to 174/6 in 20 overs. He remained unbeaten on 34. Opener Shubman Gill made 47 off 34 balls and Andre Russel 24.

English pacer Jofra Archer was the most successful RR bowler, taking two wickets while conceding only 18 runs.

Steve Smith was dismissed by KKR Pat Cummins early on in 175-run chase. Tom Curran’s half century was not enough to see the Royals through. RR were restricted to 137/9 in 20 overs.

Youngster Shivam Mavi who dismissed the in-form Sanju Samson and the dangerous Jos Buttler won the Player of the match for his tight spell (2/20).

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Rajasthan Royals registered a comfortable 16-run win over mighty Chennai Super Kings in the Day 4 match in Sharjah on September 22, giving it a fantastic start in IPL 2020.

Batting first, RR was propelled forward by the half centuries of Sanju Samson (74 off 32 balls) and Steve Smith (69 off 47 balls) helping it score 216 for 7 in 20 overs. Samson’s blitzkrieg comprised 9 sixes and a four. For CSK, Sam Curran took 3 wickets yielding 33 runs.

Though Chennai Super Kings began well, it lost openers Shane Watson and Murali Vijay in quick succession to RR spinners – Rahul Tetwatia and Shreyas Gopal – after getting off to a good start. Tetwatia picked up three wickets for RR, and clinched the match for it.

Faf du Plessis hit a 72 off 37 balls but it could not save CSK. Nor could Dhoni hat-trick of sixes in the final over.

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