Rajasthan Royals’ journey in IPL 2020 came to an end losing to Kolkata Knight Riders by 60 runs at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium. Steve Smith & Co failed to chase down 192 runs set by the Knight Riders after batting first.
Rajasthan Royals never looked in line during the run-chase. Pat Cummins produced a stellar effort with the ball to set his side’s victory. He accounted for four wickets which included Robin Uthappa, Ben Stokes, Steve Smith, and Riyan Parag to break the backbone from where Rajasthan Royals never recovered.
Jos Buttler, Rahul Tewatia and Shreyas Gopal tried to change the course of the match but by then, it was all over for Steve Smith & Co. As a result, Rajasthan Royals bow out of IPL 2020 finishing last in the points table along with Chennai Super Kings and Kings XI Punjab.
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Batting first, Shubman Gill once again provided Kolkata Knight Riders with a fine start. Rahul Tripathi also played a good hand before a middle-order collapse ensured Rajasthan Royals fight their way back. But skipper Eoin Morgan ensured the bowlers had enough to bowl to.
We were not consistent throughout – Steve Smith
He remained unbeaten on 68 from 35 balls along with a small carnage from Andre Russell of 11-ball 25 helped Kolkata post 191 runs. It was enough to put Rajasthan Royals out of IPL 2020. Speaking at the end of the game, Rajasthan skipper Steve Smith rued poor batting effort to go down against Kolkata. He also heaped praise on Pat Cummins for putting up a brilliant show when his team needed.
“We thought 180 was par. But losing four in the first four didn’t help. He (Cummins) bowled nice lengths and made us play big shots. Unfortunately, we are at the wrong end of the result. We started well with two wins, we won two before this one but we were inconsistent in the middle we didn’t take enough responsibility,” Steve Smith said.
In conclusion, Steve Smith thanked the Board of Control for Cricket in India for organising the event. He is hopeful that they have managed to put smiles on people’s face in these testing times.
“The BCCI and everyone involved to get this tournament up and running have done a fantastic. Hope we were able to put few smile on people’s faces, especially in India where it’s been tough,” Smith signed off.
