IPL 2022: RR captain Sanju Samson lauds Riyan Parag performance against RCB

Pune: Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson credited Riyan Parag for a 29-run victory in the Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) on Tuesday and said that seeing the way the team started, it was a great victory.

The Royals were in trouble after losing three wickets in powerplay and their in-form batter Jos Buttler as well. But a brilliant unbeaten knock of 56 runs helped RR win against Royal Challengers Bangalore. Skipper said they are constantly backing Parag, and it finally yielded rich dividends.

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"It is a really great win. After the start in the first 15 overs, we had real belief and trust in someone called Riyan Parag. We have been backing him for the last three-four years and he just showed it to the world today. I thought we were 10-15 runs short with no dew in the second innings. The pitch was turning and was two-paced, so 150-160 would have been a good total. It was something we were waiting for, for the back end of our batting to win us matches. Almost everyone has put up a match-winning performance so far," said Sanju Samson in a post-match presentation.

"The chat we had just before the second innings, was that when you are chasing 200 there is only one gear. But for such totals like 150, it was only a matter of putting pressure as the batsmen had to change gears. The dressing room atmosphere is really important. We make a couple of changes according to the wicket and the opponent, but communication is very important. Karun, for example, was left out just because we needed that one over from Daryl Mitchell, and he understands that, and he can come back in later," he added.

Four-wicket haul by Kuldeep Sen and an unbeaten knock of 56 runs by Riyan Parag powered Rajasthan Royals to victory by 29 runs over Royal Challengers Bangalore at MCA stadium here on Tuesday. Apart from Kuldeep, Ravichandran Ashwin took three wickets while Prasidh Krishna settled for two.

Coming to the match, chasing 145, RCB had a pathetic start as their star batter Virat Kohli continued having a poor form with the bat and departed after scoring only 9 runs in the second over. He was caught by Riyan Parag on Prasidh Krishna's delivery.

Opener and skipper Faf du Plessis was joined by Rajat Patidar and the duo tried to provide some momentum to Bangalore but the former was caught by Jos Buttler, with only 37 runs on the board, in the 7th over. It was followed by Glenn Maxwell's wicket on the delivery, leaving RCB's total at 37/3.

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Patidar was joined by Shahbaz Ahmed, who then anchored the innings for some time. Ravichandran Ashwin sent Patidar back to the dugout in the 10th over with the team's total at 58/4.

RCB then faced another loss in the form of Suyash Prabhudessai's wicket in the 12th over after he fell to Ashwin's spell and departed with just two runs in his kitty. Dinesh Karthik came to the crease and got run-out after scoring only 6 runs, with RCB's total at 72/6.

Shahbaz was then joined by Wanindu Hasaranga but the duo also could not create any miracle for RCB as the former also ended up giving his wicket to Ashwin in the 16th over. It was followed by Hasanrang's dismissal in the 17th over by Kuldeep Sen, which left RCB's total at 102/8.

Prasidh Krishna then dismissed Mohammed Siraj in the 18th over. With a total of 30 runs left to win in the last over, it was Kuldeep Sen who put the last nail in the coffin and took Harshal Patel's wicket to provide Rajasthan with a victory by 29 runs. (ANI)

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