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Despite emerging as the prime contender to win the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 at the halfway point of the season, Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) campaign met its conclusion before the final. The Sanju Samson-led team suffered a 36-run defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in Qualifier 2 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday (May 24).
RR’s commendable bowling effort falls short
Bowling first, Rajasthan did a commendable job of restricting Hyderabad’s intimidating batting unit, which has broken records aplenty this season, to a score of 175/9. Key bowlers managed to keep the Hyderabad batters in check, showcasing their skill and strategy. However, despite their best efforts, the target proved too challenging for the Rajasthan’ batters, who could only accumulate 139 runs in response.
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Sanju Samson’s post-match reflections
After the game, Samson credited Hyderabad’s spinners and noted the pitch’s unexpected behavior in the second innings, acknowledging that their middle-over performance against spin was lacking and the turning wicket was well-utilized by the opposition.
“This was a big game. I am proud of our bowlers, but we were short in the middle overs. Their use of spin against our right-handed batsmen was good; we lost the game against spin in the middle-overs. When the ball was turning, we could’ve used sweep or used our feet, but they bowled well. The wicket started behaving differently in the second innings. The ball started turning a bit and they used that advantage really well,” Samson said in the post-match presentation.
Unpredictable conditions
Samson discussed the unpredictable conditions, noting the absence of dew and increased ball turn in the second innings, which complicated their chase. He reflected on their batting strategy, acknowledging they could have used the crease better, but praised Shahbaz Ahmed and Abhishek Sharma for their effective bowling.
“It was hard to assess and guess when dew would come; it didn’t come and it started turning a lot in the second innings, which made things difficult for us. The unexpected turn of the ball added to the challenges faced by Rajasthan Royals during their chase. Samson also reflected on the team’s batting strategy, noting, When the ball was stopping and turning, we could have used the crease a bit better but they (Shahbaz Ahmed and Abhishek Sharma) bowled well and didn’t give us anything to work with,” the 29-year-old concluded.
