Sanju Samson‘s third IPL ton was not enough to see his team home in their IPL 2021 campaign opener against Punjab Kings in Mumbai on Monday. Samson scored 119 off 63 deliveries and held the chase together. However, it was Punjab Kings who had the last laugh as the game shifted balance during the second half. They won the game by the finest of margins by 4 runs. It was a game that went right down to the wire and was closer than it looked. More about match 5 report in detail below.
Chasing 222 to win Sanju Samson scored 119 off 63 deliveries and kept his side in the chase right till the final over. With 13 to win from the last over, Samson had a brain-fade moment as he turned down a single with five runs required from the last two deliveries. It was a shocking visual for everyone to see and one which became the talking point at the end of the game. Samson formed partnerships with Jos Buttler (25), Shivam Dube (23) and the most important one with Riyan Parag (25). The duo added a 52 run stand in just over 20 balls. However, Parag’s dismissal brought the onus back on Samson to win it for his team and he finally succumbed to it. He timed the penultimate ball of the match sweetly but it found Deepak Hooda much to the relief of the Punjab Kings players and supporters.
Also Read: IPL 2021: Rajasthan Royals vs Punjab Kings- ‘I Didn’t Stop Believing In The Team’ Who Said What?
Punjab Kings Prevail Despite Sanju Samson’s Heroics
Earlier in the game, Punjab Kings scored a mammoth 222 on the back of KL Rahul’s 91. However, it was Deepak Hooda’s 28 ball 64 that provided the real impetus to the innings, Universe Boss Chris Gayle also scored 40 runs and added 67 with Rahul for the second wicket.
Sanju Samson was awarded the Man of the Match for his valiant 119 which came in a losing cause. He joins Rishabh Pant and Andrew Symonds in the list of players who scored a ton in a losing cause. In the process, Samson also scored 2000 runs for Rajasthan Royals in the IPL.
Bowlers from both teams travelled the distance. In between that, the rookies in Chetan Sakaria and Arshdeep Singh performed the best. It was Arshdeep who defended 13 in the final over to win it for the Kings. Arshdeep went for 35 off his spell and took three wickets. Sakaria making his IPL debut took 3 for 31. The game saw as many as 24 sixes being. While Punjab hit 13, Rajasthan hit 11.
Punjab Kings 221 for 6 (Rahul 91, Hooda 64, Gayle 40, Sakariya 3-31) beat Rajasthan Royals 217 for 7 (Samson 119, Arshdeep 3-35) by four runs
