Rajasthan Royals defeated Mumbai Indians by 7 wickets in the 47th match of VIVO IPL 2018 played at Wankedhe Stadium, Mumbai just a few moments ago. RR captain Rahane won the toss and fielded first. MI openers gave a good start but losing wickets at regular intervals, scoring a below-par total. Chasing Buttler again showed his brilliant form and helped RR to win the match with ease.
Rajasthan Royals captain Ajiyanka Rahane won the toss and elected to field first. Mumbai Indian openers Surya Kumar Yadav and Evin Lewis began off to a good start with aggressive stroke play from both batsmen. At the end of 6 overs, Mumbai Indians scored 51 for 0.
After the power play overs, both openers continued their aggressive intent. Jofra Archer dismissed Surya Kumar Yadav for 38 and then picked Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma in the next ball. West Indies hard-hitting batsman Evin Lewis reached his half-century off 37 balls. Dhawal Kulkarni picked the wicket of Lewis for 60.
Last match hero, Ishan Kishan only contributed 12 runs. Krunal Pandya was dismissed cheaply for 3 runs. Hardik Pandya played some aggressive strokes scoring 36 runs off 21 balls. Ben Cutting scored 10 off 7 balls. Mumbai Indians posted 168 for 6 in 20 overs. For Rajasthan Royals, Jofra Archer and Ben Stokes picked 2 wickets each.
Chasing 169, Rajasthan Royals lost an early wicket of Darcy Short by Jasprit Bumrah in the very first over itself. Rahane and Buttler steadied the innings with some good stroke play. At the end of first overs, RR scored 51 for 1.
After the power play overs, Rahane struggled to time the ball but Buttler then attacked the Mumbai Indians bowlers. Buttler reached a 5th successive half-century off 35 balls. Rahane and Buttler added 95 runs for the 2nd wicket. Rahane was dismissed for 37.
Sanju Samson came to the crease and scored a quick-fire 26 off 14 balls. Buttler continued his brilliant form and remained not out on 94.
RR 171 for 3 in 18 overs ( Buttler 94*, Rahane 37, Hardik Pandya 2/52) beat
MI 168 for 6 in 20 overs ( Evin Lewis 60, Surya Kumar Yadav 38, Hardik Pandya 36, Jofra Archer 2/16, Ben Stokes 2/26) by 7 wickets.
MI captain Rohit Sharma said: Should have got 15-20 runs more. We have played some good cricket in the tournament. With 2 matches still to be played, we need to play aggressive cricket and hope that results come in our favour.
RR captain Rahane said: Great win for our team. 168-169 was 15 runs short on this wicket. Jofra Archer picked 2 wickets in 2 successive balls changed and gave us the confidence to do well. Jos Buttler has been great after opening the innings. We were not getting partnerships in the earlier games but now getting partnerships.
Man of the match Jos Buttler said: Our bowlers did a great job to restrict them to 168 after the way their openers started. We kept them 15 runs short on this wicket. Looking forward to next game and hope to give RR a flying start, continue the winning momentum.
Last time these two teams met in this tournament, RR defeated Mumbai Indians in a thriller at Sawai Man Stadium, Jaipur.
With RR winning this match, Chennai Super Kings became the 2nd team to qualify for playoff stage.
Royal Challengers Bangalore will take on Kings XI Punjab at Holkar Stadium, Indore in tomorrow’s match.
