In their final chat before the last few dramatic moments of the match, the commentators really couldn’t believe their eyes. The poor Rajasthan team looked like they were fumbling through what should have been a simple chase for a win-gone-wrong moment. This was the third time in a row that they would just spoil a run chase, which left everyone scratching their heads.
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Simon Katich, a former cricketer, and his commentator partner Pommie Mbangwa criticized the batting display by Rajasthan mercilessly. Katich indicated that the Royals went wrong when Shubham Dubey, the last recognized batter, got out on the first ball of the last over. That was a massive blow considering that Rajasthan needed 17 runs to grab victory. “They butchered the chase, they really did,” said Katich during his commentary.
Mbangwa added that it was the third time in quick succession that the same luck should strike the same team. “It’s like they were on their way to winning, then just lost their way,” he said. It was a mystery to everyone how Rajasthan just couldn’t get rid of the negative vibes of their previous matches, where they faltered in a similar manner.
This loss put Rajasthan in trouble concerning the tournament. With just five games left with them, there could be no margin for error from here on for them to keep up their qualification hopes. A nail-biter of a match, Josh Hazlewood from RCB significantly contributed to RCB’s first home win of the season. He was terrific in the penultimate over when he took two wickets for just a run when Rajasthan needed 18 runs from 12 balls. This brilliant performance added to a difficult loss for them, as Rajasthan could only manage 194 runs chasing 206 runs.
It was a pity that Hazlewood’s heroics overshadowed the brilliant innings played by Yashasvi Jaiswal, who made a mere 19 balls for his 49 runs, and Dhruv Jurel, who contributed 47 runs from 34 balls. For the Royals, all of this turned out to be for nothing as they ended up losing yet again for their fifth straight loss. Earlier on, RCB superstar Virat Kohli made a telling contribution with 70 off 42 balls, while good support came from Devdutt Padikkal with 50 off 27 balls, setting up a solid partnership of 95 runs for the second wicket.
With this in mind, the Royals have much to ponder before their home encounter against the Gujarat Titans on April 28. To survive in this tournament, they really need to find their footing and get rid of this losing streak.
