END OF OVER:20 | 16 Runs | RR: 199/4 | RR: 9.95
- Shimron Hetmyer39 (21b)
- Dhruv Jurel8 (3b)
- Anrich Nortje4-0-44-0
- Mukesh Kumar4-0-36-2
5.14 pm Well how about that, an innings that clocks in 16 minutes under two hours. We might be in for a match that goes under the four-hour mark today. Woo hoo! Jaiswal was a whirling dervish in the first third of the innings. But after he got out, the innings lost momentum quite badly even though Buttler was at the crease for the majority of the way. He just wasn't getting enough of the strike. Somehow Rajasthan have fallen short of 200. A large amount of credit has to go to the Delhi spinners for reeling in the run rate. This feels like a below par total. We'll see if that is indeed the case when the Delhi chase gets underway. Stay with us for the start of the reply coming up shortly.
Here's Jos Buttler at the innings break: "I cut my finger in the last game, but we've got a good doc here with a few stitches and I actually felt fine to play. [Buttler is given the orange cap as the new scoring leader this season] It's obviously nice to wear. Just glad to start the season well and get up and running. I think we've got a decent score on the board. It's obviously a really good batting wicket with a fast outfield so we'll have to bowl well to defend this. I think in the Powerplay it was a fantastic wicket. Maybe as the ball got a little bit older, the bounce got a little bit lower. There was a little period where we lost a couple of wickets and the two spinners tied us down a little bit. But obviously with Ashwin and Chahal in our team, hopefully they can do the same job for us. It's certainly an option. All the guys are comfortable to bowl with the new ball if they have to. Trent Boult has been really good for us at the start. If we can control the Powerplay as best as we can - I expect Delhi to be really aggressive in the first six overs as they saw the rhythm of our innings - maybe it got a little bit harder outside of the Powerplay."
chinay: ""Purely on current form, Jurel and Hetmyer should come at 4"
Shriram: "This might sound a little harsh, but I find Jos to be a cricketer with extreme double standards. While he has no problem taking advantage of umpiring errors (his dismissal today and the wide decision that was later reversed), he becomes the self-appointed flagbearer of cricketing ethics when he's on the receiving end of fielding smarts (mankad). Is it just me or do other people feel this way about his selective ethical standards?" You said it Shriram, not me!
END OF OVER:19 | 15 Runs 1 Wkt | RR: 183/4 | RR: 9.63
- Shimron Hetmyer24 (16b)
- Dhruv Jurel7 (2b)
- Mukesh Kumar4-0-36-2
- Anrich Nortje3-0-28-0
Ashish: "Finally, a comment published on Parag! Honestly, RR will have no future to speak of, if they persist with Parag while mismanaging a talent like Padikkal. They may pretend they want to do well, meanwhile. It just makes their matches irrelevant for audience beyond RR fans." Last match everyone in the comments was demanding Padikkal be dropped. Now it's Parag. Will be easier and quicker to publish comments for who fans actually want to see in the XI rather than out of the XI.
JC Buttler c & b Mukesh Kumar 79 (94m 51b 11x4 1x6) SR: 154.90
Guru22: "Brilliant block by Delhi after that flying start.. impressive "
END OF OVER:18 | 11 Runs | RR: 168/3 | RR: 9.33
- Jos Buttler79 (50b)
- Shimron Hetmyer16 (13b)
- Anrich Nortje3-0-28-0
- Rovman Powell2-0-18-1
Nortje returns around the stumps.
END OF OVER:17 | 14 Runs | RR: 157/3 | RR: 9.23
- Shimron Hetmyer15 (11b)
- Jos Buttler69 (46b)
- Rovman Powell2-0-18-1
- Mukesh Kumar3-0-21-1
Aryann: "For someone who performs so well in the domestic circuit, Parag's performances in the IPL have been consistently below par and disappointing". There have been a flood of similar comments regarding Parag's performances, most of them unpublishable because... keep it clean folks. This is a family web site! We are owned by Disney after all...
Anthony Black: "What is Joe Root's role in the RR Team?" Casher of free checks?