Building upon the platform set by captain Sanju Samson, Rajasthan Royals beat Lucknow Super Giants by 20 runs in their Indian Premier League 2024 opener at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Sunday.
Skipper Sanju Samson, who was named Player of the Match, top-scored for the Royals with an unbeaten 82 off just 52 balls hitting three fours and six sixes before Sandeep Sharma’s brilliant spell of 1/22 in three overs sealed the game in favour of the home team.
Trent Boult, meanwhile, picked up two wickets to push LSG on the backfoot early. This was Sanju’s fifth consecutive score of 50-plus in an IPL opener for the Royals.
Sanju goes down the ground, Sanju goes… 🔥😍 pic.twitter.com/T8dEqhn92U
— Rajasthan Royals (@rajasthanroyals) March 24, 2024
KL Rahul and Nicholas Pooran fought valiantly scoring half-centuries but could not prevent the Royals’ march to victory.
Opting to bat first, the Royals amassed 193 for the loss of four wickets powered by Sanju’s knock. He shared a 93-run partnership for the third wicket with Riyan Parag after the Royals lost both openers within the first six overs.
Parag’s knock of 43 off 29 balls included a boundary and three maximums. Dhruv Jurel chipped in with 20 from 12 balls towards the end of the Royals’ innings.
Yashasvi Jaiswal got the Royals off to a good start hitting three boundaries and a six in his 12-ball 24 knock which helped them get to 54 runs in the powerplay.
Naveen-ul-Haq was the most successful bowler for the Super Giants picking up two wickets for 41 runs off his four overs, while Mohsin Khan and Ravi Bishnoi picked a wicket apiece.
In reply, the Super Giants got off to a shaky start to lose their first three wickets for just 11 runs on the board. But KL Rahul and Nicholas Pooran put together 85 off 52 balls for the fifth wicket to take the Super Giants close but fell short in the end.
For the Royals, Trent Boult picked up two wickets for 35 runs to be their top performer with the ball. Ravichandran Ashwin and Yuzvendra Chahal picked up a wicket each along with Sandeep Sharma’s miserly spell to round off an excellent bowling show.
Rajasthan Royals play Delhi Capitals in their next match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on March 28.
RR vs LSG IPL 2024 brief scores: Rajasthan Royals 193/4 (Sanju Samson 82*, Riyan Parag 43, Naveen-ul-Haq 2/41) beat Lucknow Super Giants (Nicholas Pooran 64*, KL Rahul 58, Trent Boult 2/35). Get full RR vs LSG scorecard here.
