A captain’s knock from Punjab Kings skipper KL Rahul and his 105-run partnership with Deepak Hooda has helped the team post 221/6 in their 20 overs against Rajasthan Royals in both teams’ opening IPL match of the season.
Rahul scored 91 before becoming one of youngster Chetan Sakariya’s wickets on the day. The 23-year-old finished with a haul of 3/31 in his 4 overs after also bowling the final over of the Punjab innings in which he conceded just 5 runs and picked up two wickets - that of KL Rahul and Jhye Richardson.
While Mayank Agarwal and KL Rahul opened, the pair only added 22 runs for the first wicket. After Mayank fell to Sakariya in the third over, Chris Gayle came out to join Rahul and the pair smashed 67 runs off 45 deliveries.
Gayle's 28-ball 40 comprised two sixes and four fours as he became the first batsman to hit 350 sixes in the history of Indian Premier League. Young Riyan Parag claimed his wicket in the 10th over.
Deepak Hooda and KL Rahul then collaborated for one of the most entertaining partnerships this season, scoring 105 off 47 deliveries. Three sixes each were smashed in the 13th and the 14th overs bowled by Shivam Dube and Shreyas Gopal as Punjab went from 110/2 in 12 overs to 150/2 after 14.
The hammering didn't end there. After a couple of overs that went for 11 each, Punjab Kings took 15 off Chetan Sakariya, who had got the early wicket of Mayank Agarwal.
Even in the 18th over, when Rajasthan Royals got rid of Hooda and Nicholas Pooran, the Punjab franchise managed to get 14 runs.
Then came 15 off Mustafizur Rahman's fourth over, the innings' 19th.
Young Saurashtra left-arm pacer Sakariya got two wickets in his last over and conceded just five runs to finish as the most successful Rajasthan Royals bowler with three wickets for 31 runs in his four overs.
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