PBKS vs RR Review – Rajasthan trump Punjab in a crucial game to stay in contention

Rajasthan Royals (RR) trumped Punjab Kings (PBKS) to win the must-win encounter by four wickets at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamsala on Friday, May 19. The victory means that the Royals are still in contention for a spot in the playoffs. But, they are reliant on results of other teams in the mix.

Speaking about the match, Royals’ skipper Sanju Samson won the toss and elected to field first. Prabhsimran and Dhawan failed to hit the ground running as they were sent packing for two and 17, respectively. However, Sam Curran and Jitesh Sharma carved out blazing knocks to help Punjab attain a competitive first innings total.

While Curran cracked an unbeaten 31-ball 49, Jitesh smashed 41 off 23 to propel PBKS to 187. Meanwhile, Navdeep Saini returned a three-wicket haul despite leaking 40 runs in his four overs at an economy of 10.00.

In response, Jos Buttler was dismissed for his third successive duck. Despite the early dismissal, Devdutt Padikkal and Yashasvi Jaiswal put up a 73-run stand and kept the Royals steady in the chase. Padikkal got 51 off 30 before departing whereas Jaiswal maintained his purple patch and got 50 off 36 balls. Later, it was Shimron Hetmyer, who came down the order and hammered 46 off mere 28 balls to bring his side close to the target. As the match came down to the wire, Impact Player Dhruv Jurel hammered a six to win the contest for the Royals.

Top performers from the match

Sam Curran: After the regular dismissals, it was Sam Curran who injected momentumin the first innings. Curran slammed two maximums and four boundaries in his unbeaten 49 off 31 balls, at a strike rate of 158.06. Additionally, his 64-run partnership with Jitesh Sharma helped Punjab attain a competitive total.

Shimron Hetmyer: Though Jaiswal and Padikkal registered fifties, it was Hetmyer who scored a blistering knock following their dismissals. His knock came at a crunch time when Punjab were slowly seeing their way into the contest. However, the explosive southpaw dented all hopes and hammered three sixes and four fours in his 28-ball 46 to steer his side close to victory.

What’s next for both teams?

Rajasthan are reliant on other teams’ results to sneak into the playoffs, whereas Punjab have been eliminated from the race for top-four.