Kings XI Punjab led by a stunning batting performance from Chris Gayle won their campaign opener against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on Monday. Doing this they also won their first ever game at the Sawai Man Singh stadium against the Royals in the IPL history.
Gayle’s knock off 79 off 47 balls along with Sarfaraz Khan’s cameo of 46 off 19 balls ensured that KXIP registered a score of 184/4. Ben Stokes took two wickets for the Royals giving away 48 runs. Krishnappa Gowtam and Dhawal Kulkarni bowled tight overs for the Royals as Jaydev Unadkat went wicketless. Every Royal bowler was royally treated by the Universe Boss Chris Gayle as he hit them to all parts of the ground.
However, the real turning point in the game came during the Rajasthan Royals innings. Skipper Ajinkya Rahane (27) and Jos Buttler (69) added 78 for the first wicket before Ashwin dismissed his opposite number.
At 108 with the Royals still needing 77 to win, Butter was dismissed in the most bizzare manner possible. He backed too far and was run-out by Ashwin off his own bowling. This was the very first example of ‘Mankinding’ in IPL history and Buttler found himself at the wrong end of it. Rahane’s men ultimately lost the match by 14 runs.
Here is how Twitter reacted to Punjab’s victory over the Royals.
All the 8 teams have now played atleast one match in this IPL so far. Punjab and Rajasthan will play Kolkata knight Riders and Sunrisers Hyderabad in their next game.
(At The Quint, we are answerable only to our audience. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member. Because the truth is worth it.)