IPL 2025: In the PBKS vs RR match, Rajasthan Royals bounced back to winning ways, defeating Punjab Kings by 50 runs. Rajasthan batted first and got off to a strong start with Yashasvi Jaiswal (67) and captain Sanju Samson (38) leading the charge.
They put on 89 runs for the opening partnership, leaving Punjab’s bowlers struggling. Riyan Parag (43*) played an important knock at number three and stayed till the end, while Shimron Hetmyer (20) added some powerful strokes towards the end. Rajasthan finished with 205/4.
Punjab Kings had a terrible start in their chase. Priyansh Arya was dismissed on the first ball, and Shreyas Iyer, after hitting two boundaries, was out on the last ball of the over. Marcus Stoinis and Prabhsimran Singh also failed to score, and Punjab were left reeling at 43/4.
Nehal Wadhera (62) and Glenn Maxwell (30) then put together an 88-run partnership for the fifth wicket, giving Punjab hope. But Rajasthan made a strong comeback, taking both wickets in consecutive balls. After that, Punjab’s batting fell apart, and they were bowled out for 155/9, with Rajasthan winning by 50 runs.
IPL 2025: Shreyas Iyer Hails Nehal Wadhera’s Performance
After the match, PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer said that they gave away too many extra runs with the ball and couldn’t carry out their plans effectively. He said:
“To be honest, I thought that we would have been okay to chase something around 180-185 over here but we gave few extra runs. We were unable to execute a lot of things and we will surely learn from this one. I’m glad that this loss happened at the beginning of the season.
“It was a tricky wicket. The ball was holding on a bit. We were trying to take pace off and it was working well for us. When I walked out to bat, I felt that we could’ve stitched a few partnerships rather than over-attacking at the bowlers.”
Shreyas Iyer also stressed the need to reassess their approach and come back stronger, as the IPL is a long tournament. He said:
“Obviously as you can see that today there was no dew which we were anticipating at the start of the game. We can’t be blaming on that. We need to go back to the drawing board and see the videos. In terms of our batting, we will try to focus on building up partnerships. We lost back-to-back wickets as well which was not good.”
Shreyas Iyer praised middle-order batter Nehal Wadhera, calling him a phenomenal player. He concluded by saying that he was glad PBKS lost the game against RR early in the tournament, as it would serve as a wake-up call for the team. He added:
“He is a phenomenal player. The courage he showed when he walked out to bat was brilliant. He took some time at the crease and then he was able to analyze the wicket and target the bad deliveries.
“We won our previous two games and I’m glad that we lost a game in the early part of the tournament. This can be a wake-up call for us.”
IPL 2025: Sanju Samson Praises Young Batting Line-up and Strong Bowling Attack
In the post-match presentation, Sanju Samson said that they set a good total and praised his young batting lineup. He said:
“The way we started in the powerplay, we thought we were running a bit short but the quality of the batters we have got, 205 was a very good score on the board. Very young batting lineup, very young in age but they have played a lot of games for the country. They are managing and playing the game very well.”
Sanju Samson called the pace-bowling pair of Jofra Archer and Sandeep Sharma a lethal combination, but he also playfully joked about Sandeep’s inability to bowl at high speed. He explained:
“(on Archer and Sandeep) That’s a very deadly combo,. one guy bowling at 150 and one guy at 115. (on being told Sandeep hit 130kph) Oh did he? we should cut a cake on that. I can trust them a bit more with the pressure overs. (on Archer) We all love it when he bowls fast. Doing it for me in the last 4 years, he is one of the best guys in India right now bowling fast.”
Sanju Samson also mentioned that they were not getting complacent, even after taking quick wickets, because Punjab Kings are a strong team.
“We did have a small meeting in the timeout and I suggested they are a quality side and we can’t take it easy. Till the last ball is bowled, we can’t guarantee a win. We focused on the process and the result took care of itself. We took our time to find out what the best combination and lineups and orders are, injuries we have to take care as this is a long tournament.”
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