Kings XI Punjab went down in a crucial game against Rajasthan Royals in Abu Dhabi to make their chances of qualifying in the playoffs difficult. KL Rahul & Co failed to defend 184 runs thanks to brilliant batting display for the Royals.
While many thought it would be a difficult run chase, Ben Stokes set the platform with a quickfire fifty. He brought his fifty within the powerplay and there was no stopping Rajasthan Royals from there. Sanju Samson carried his brilliant form in this game to carry on the innings before Jos Buttler and Steve Smith took them home. KL Rahul looked completely unsettled as his bowlers failed to respond and defend the total.
Earlier in the day, things could have been different for Royals had they not given Chris Gayle two lives, but Gayle took his chances wisely for most parts. KL Rahul, as usual, laid a good platform after Mandeep got a nasty short ball first up from Jofra Archer. Rajasthan Royals tried but couldn’t break the 120-run stand until Ben Stokes provided the magic.
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Horrible toss to lose – KL Rahul
But Gayle carried on the onslaught to take the innings deep. He finished one short of a century from the brilliance of Jofra Archer to guide Kings XI Punjab to 184 runs which was not enough for them to seal a win.
Speaking at the end of the game, KL Rahul admitted that it was a tough toss to lose. He also added that dew made things difficult in the second half with two leg-spinners operating.
“It was a horrible toss to lose, to be honest. It did get very easy to bat later on. There was a lot of dew in the second half and that made it a bit tough for the bowlers to grip the ball. When you’re operating with two leg spinners like we are, it does make things difficult. Don’t think we bowled that badly but need to operate better with the wet ball. The dew has been unpredictable this season. You can’t prepare for it but need to adapt to it,” KL Rahul said.