Rahul Tewatia and Riyan Parag star as Rajasthan Royals pull off another heist
Sunrisers bossed the game for 36 overs, and then they let it slip away
Sunrisers bossed the game for 36 overs, and then they let it slip away
Scorer: Chandan Duorah | Commentator: Varun Shetty
6:07pm And that is it from the first game. Head over to the other game where DC have already lost a wicket against Mumbai.
Rahul Tewatia: This was the role given to me and it was clear from a long time. I was batting well for a while and I was confident and was hitting them well when we played practice games. So it's easy when you know your role. The wickets were falling so I just wanted to hold one end up and wait for the boundary balls. I knew if I keep my self-belief and take it deep, I could pull it off. I told Riyan that the wicket was playing slow and the deeper we take it, the better our chances, even if we needed 50 off the last 4 because we have the shots. Riyan asked me what to do - I told him to respect the good balls and take singles, and I could take on the attack. Against Rashid I saw the opportunity to play the reverse sweep and took it. [The Khaleel incident] No big deal, we just got taken away in the heat of the moment.
Rahul Tewatia is the Man of the Match.
Smith: I thought Rahul and Riyan as a young kid showed great composure. Stokesy obviously didn't come off tonight. Or top four didn't fire, but today showed our depth. With Stokesy back it brings a nice balance to us. He's been impressive, hasn't he? Just thrives in pressure situations. You bring in his bowling and fielding to it and he's a terrific player for us. I don't think it was the easiest wicket and the square boundaries are quite big too. So great composure from Parag. Proud that he could come back in and score some runs straight up.
David Warner: Couldn't get across the line there but it happens in cricket. [Holding Rashid back] We've done it in the past, we've held him back and tr and nullify some runs, but these two played exceptionally well. Tonight we probably - we didn't mis-execute, but some of the decisions at the top of the mark weren't there. And we probably bowled the wrong ball at the time. Lots of positives coming out and we'll take it on to the next game. We need to work out as these wickets get tired, how to bat through the first 6 and the middle, and then assess with our bowling. [Middle-overs batting] Yeah I've got some power there! But I'm obviously cooked in the middle. Look obviously Samad's one of those guys. We thought bringing in Vijay today, playing in the middle and with long boundaries we thought that Vijay would probably give a bit more with the ball.
Riyan Parag: When Rahul bhaiyya came to bat, the motto was to take it deep. Even Rashid had one so we calculated how to take on Rashid and it worked well. I think when I went into bat after a few balls, I had a clear mind tatI wanted to go after 16 overs. I think we just wanted to target the fast bowlers because the wicket was two-paced. I'm a big dreamer, I dream of situations like this. Now it feels a lot more real to me. I love these situations, I'm there to put my hand up. That was the Bihu dance at the end, traditional dance of Assam. Some of the Assamese boys were up there in the balcony.
Bill Lee: "Varun, when you said "breaks into dance!" ... what exactly does that mean?" --- It means he danced!
Johnson : "For everyone who is thinking what was Riyan Parag dancing, that is Bihu from Assam. "
Al Pachino: "Tewatia does it again! Rashid Khan goes downthis time. Great hand from Parag too. "
Kapil Baldawa: "A perfect amawer to the likes of Smith, Buttler and Samson. If you play percentages, you still have a chance and to the great KL Rahul, this is how you finish games. Not a nurdling at run a ball in 19th over and leave it till last over"
Murtaza: "Tewatia has done a tewatia again!! Though this time the whole team was struggling to play and he just came and settled the nerves and one shot brought another and took his team home. Parag and tewatia you beauty!"
5:45pm Khaleel and Tewatia having a heated discussion. Some words were said before this ball, but it looks like Khaleel is de-escalating. I mean, Tewatia has all the bragging rights anyway.
Another chat now between bowler and captain. And Kane Williamson. There's a short cover in place. He's around the wicket
Now midwicket comes in
Long discussion now about where to bowl. Fine leg goes back. Third man is in. Square leg is in. And cover is in. Will he dig it in short? There's a deep backward point. Confusion though. Now square leg goes to short fine and fine leg moves across to deep backward square.
They needed 36 off three, they've managed 28 in two. Can this pair take them through with 8 to get? Partnership of 73 off 7 overs. Khaleel has had a good game so far. Can he close it out? He's around the wicket.
Sunrisers bossed the game for 36 overs, and then they let it slip away
They had to overcome near-impossible odds to beat Sunrisers Hyderabad and they did it all as if it was always the plan
Also: What was the thinking behind the Sunrisers' super slow start with the bat?
ESPNcricinfo's updates from the 26th match of IPL 2020, in Dubai
Sunrisers have won three of their last four games, Royals are on a four-match losing streak