PBKS defeats RR in 65th IPL game

Guwahati: In the 65th match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, Punjab Kings (PBKS) defeated Rajasthan Royals (RR) by five wickets on Wednesday at the Barsapara Stadium in this city.

On the strength of their skipper Sam Curran, who was excellent in almost all three areas of the game, PBKS chased down the modest total of 145.

Avesh Khan’s over saw some life bounce back into the Sanju Samson-led side as the ex-Delhi fast bowler took the wickets of Rilee Rossouw and Shashank Singh in the sixth over of the second innings to drag the side back into the game.

Just when it seemed that Punjab were on the verge of a collapse, in came captain Sam Curran who scored a valiant half-century and went on to win the game for his side. Curran and Jitesh Sharma’s 63-run partnership added stability to their innings and put them in a favourable condition to win the game.

The Punjab Kings’ bowling attack was on point today from the very first over when Sam Curran bowled young Yashasvi Jaiswal out. What followed was an excellent display of bowling as the Royals were unable to find their footing in the game.

It was once again Riyan Parag whose attempts to rescue his side went in vain as the breakout star of this edition of the IPL’s 48 running innings went in vain.

On a night where none of the batsmen made a mark in the game, it was an unlikely ally in Ravichandran Ashwin who along with Parag stitched up a 50-run partnership to take the side to a respectable total.

The Royals are in a bit of a pickle as Wednesday’s result was their fourth consecutive defeat and anything but a win against league leaders, KKR could see them lose out on a second-place finish with both SRH and CSK possessing a superior run rate.

Brief Score: Rajasthan Royals 144/9 in 20 overs (Riyan Parag 48, Ravichandran Ashwin 28; Sam Curran 2-24, Rahul Chahar 2-26) lost to Punjab Kings 145/5 in 18.5 overs (Sam Curran 63 not out, Rilee Rossouw 22; Avesh Khan 2-28, Yuvzendra Chahal 2-31.) by five wickets.

With inputs from IANS