In what turned out to be a high-scoring match, former champions Rajasthan Royals (RR) beat fellow former champions Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by 16 runs, in Match 4 of the 2020 Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium on Monday. The match was highlighted for more sixes than fours.
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Match report: Winning the toss, CSK skipper MS Dhoni invited RR to bat first. However, the decision backfired, as opener Steve Smith, along with wicketkeeper-batsman Sanju Samson, stole the show. While Samson played a furious innings of a 32-ball 74, Smith struck a 47-ball 69 to help RR post 2167. The innings also involved a cameo from Jofra Archer in the final over.
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In reply, CSK were under pressure right from the start. Although opener Shane Watson played a brief 21-ball 33, followed by Faf du Plessis's flamboyant 37-ball 72, the wickets kept falling at crucial intervals, courtesy Rahul Tewatia's 337, thus derailing their progress. As they fell short by 16 runs, an ample number of records were broken, as we take a look.
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Samson hits third-fastest 50 for RR: Samson's onslaught early in the innings helped him reach his half-century in just 19 deliveries. As a result, he became the third-fastest to do so for RR in the IPL. He is led by Owais Shah (19) and Jos Buttler (18). It was also the second-fastest half-century against CSK in the tournament.
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Piyush Chawla bowls fifth-most expensive over by a spinner: Chawla was undoubtedly one of the most expensive bowlers tonight. In his opening over, he gave away 28 runs, which happened to be the fifth-most expensive over by a spinner in the tournament. Rahul Sharma tops the list, having given away 31 against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in 2012.
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Chawla conceded most sixes: Chawla continued to script unwanteds tonight, as he also became the bowler to concede the most amount of sixes in the tournament, which happens to be around 180.
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Lungi Ngidi bowls third-most-expensive 20th over: CSK bowlers had a tough time against RR batsmen, including the pacers, as Ngidi was hammered in the final over of the innings. With four consecutive sixes in the opening four balls, Ngidi conceded 30 runs, which happened to be the third-most-expensive 20th over in the tournament. The list includes Chris Jordan for Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) from Sunday, and Ashoke Dinda for Rising Pune Supergiant (RPS) in 2017, as both conceded 30 as well.
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RR post their fourth-highest total: The carnage by Samson and Smith, followed by a late Archer blitz, allowed RR to post a total of 2167, which is their fourth-highest in the tournament, and the second-highest against CSK. Their best happens to be the one against CSK, in 2010, when they had scored 2235.
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RR hit their most sixes in an innings, and against CSK: RR were not short of records in this tie, as they hammered 17 sixes in the match, which happens to be their best performance so far. They eclipsed their previous best of 14, against Deccan Chargers (DC) and RCB, in 2008 and 2018, respectively. It was also their most sixes against CSK in the tournament, equalling KKR's 2018 record.
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Fifth instance of Dhoni remaining not out during unsuccessful chase: It rarely happens that when Dhoni stays not out, his side has lost. However, tonight was the fifth such instance when he failed to steer his team past despite staying on the crease until the end. His previous instances were in 2013 (vs MI), 2014 (vs KXIP), 2018 (vs KXIP) and 2019 (vs RCB).
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