IPL 2023, SRH beat RR after chasing 215: Key stats
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) beat Rajasthan Royals in match number 52 of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur. The Orange Army successfully chased 215, with Abhishek Sharma's 34-ball 55 scripting their win. Abdul Samad got SRH home eventually. Yuzvendra Chahal's four-wicket haul went in vain. Earlier, Jos Buttler (95) and Sanju Samson (66*) powered RR's innings.
How did the match pan out?
A 138-run partnership between Buttler and Samson drove RR to 214/2 after they elected to bat. Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal smashed an 18-ball 35 before Buttler and Samson stitched a formidable stand. Samson powered RR past 200 in the second half and helped the Royals finish well. Abhishek and Rahul Tripathi fueled SRH's run-chase, while Samad chased 17 runs off the final.
Buttler's fifth half-century of IPL 2023
Buttler could have become just the fourth batter to slam a century in the IPL. The RR opener fell for 95 off 59 deliveries, a knock laced with 10 fours and 4 sixes. Buttler slammed his fourth half-century of the ongoing season. He now has 19 fifties in the cash-rich league. Buttler also crossed the 390-run mark in IPL 2023.
Another incredible knock from Samson
Samson complemented Buttler during the innings. The RR skipper ended up scoring an unbeaten 66 off 38 balls (4 fours, 5 sixes). Samson slammed his third half-century of IPL 2023 and his 19th overall in the tournament. Samson's unbeaten 66 propelled the Royals past 200 and finished with a strike rate of 173.68. He smashed two fours and a six in the final over.
Joint-most 50+ partnerships for RR in a single IPL season
Buttler and Jaiswal have complimented each other ever since they opened together for the Royals. The duo has worked wonders for the franchise. As per statistician Sashikant Singh, with today's 50-plus opening stand, they have registered their 6th 50-plus partnership for RR this season. Only Rahul Dravid and Ajinkya Rahane had six such partnerships for RR in a single season in IPL 2012.
300 IPL fours for Samson
During the match, Samson raced to 300 fours in the IPL. He became just the second RR batter after Buttler to accomplish this milestone in the cash-rich league. Samson smacked 4 of these fours against SRH.
A look at other notable numbers
RR's 2014/2 against SRH is now the highest total in Jaipur in the IPL. There is only one other instance of a team recording a 200+ total in the cash-rich league. It happened earlier this season as RR scored 202/5 against Chennai Super Kings (CSK). Notably, England's Joe Root made his IPL debut tonight. However, he did not come out to bat.
A show of intent from Abhishek
Abhishek showed great consistency last season for SRH, batting at the top of the order. He has continued that form here as he slammed his second fifty. He gave SRH a fine start along with Anmolpreet Singh as they added 51 runs. Later, Abhishek stitched a 65-run stand with Tripathi before he perished in the 13th over, trying to attack Ravichandran Ashwin.
Chahal takes four; joint-most wickets in IPL
Chahal, who took 4/29, has raced to 183 wickets in 142 IPL appearances, matching Dwayne Bravo at the summit of the IPL wickets tally. However, Chahal has taken 19 fewer matches to reach the milestone and owns a better economy of 7.65. This was his fifth four-wicket haul in the IPL. His best figures of 5/40 came against KKR in 2022.
