IPL 2024: Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians, 38th Match - Who Said What?

A complete power-packed performance from Rajasthan Royals helped them beat Mumbai Indians by nine wickets at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. The table toppers ticked all the boxes and were clinical with the new ball, which eventually played a huge role in getting the job done. Meanwhile, Mumbai once again showed very little character and they will need to introspect their strategies to come out of the misery.

Batting first, Mumbai were reduced to 20/3, which turned out to be 52/4 as Sandeep Sharma and Trent Boult were sensational with the new ball. Later on, Yuzvendra Chahal chipped in well and picked up his 200th wicket in the IPL and became the first cricketer in history to do so. Meanwhile, after losing four wickets, Tilak Varma and Nehal Wadhera gave MI some momentum as they stitched a partnership of 99 runs in the middle.

Also Read - Yuzvendra Chahal becomes first bowler to bag 200 IPL wickets

Tilak eventually hit 65 runs off 45 deliveries while Wadhera made 49 runs off 24 balls. MI dominated the middle overs and was expected to reach the 200-run mark but Sandeep proved to be too hot to handle as the pacer picked up a five-wicket haul, resulting in MI posting 179 runs on the board in the first innings.

When it came to the chase, Rajasthan were in control of the game right from the start. The opening duo of Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal built a partnership of 74 runs and after that, the youngster took control of the situation and went berserk. Jaiswal hit his first century of IPL 2024, while skipper Sanju Samson made 38* runs as RR picked up a comfortable victory.

1. RR can put no foot wrong

Being consistent in IPL is one of the toughest things to do. However, Rajasthan are having that kind of a season in which they can do no wrong. Against Mumbai, they picked up wickets with the new ball, in the death and more or less controlled the game in the middle overs. With the bat, the openers have given the side a good start, followed by Jaiswal’s century and Samson scoring some important runs. There’s a reason why Rajasthan are the number-one team at the moment and the reason is consistency.

2. Sandeep Sharma masterclass

Right after returning from injury, Sandeep Sharma produced a masterclass as the pacer conceded just 18 runs in his four overs and picked up five wickets - both with the new ball and in the death. His return back to fitness is a massive boost for Rajasthan, as they will now play a few away games, in which Sandeep’s experience will be vital.

3. Jaisball makes its return

When Jaiswal dominates, there’s very little the bowlers can do. He was handed lifelines a couple of times as MI had a terrible day on the field but the opener would be to get some runs behind his back and most importantly, get the job done. The century will boost his confidence as Jaiswal is fighting for the opener's spot in the T20 World Cup.

Losing skipper Hardik Pandya said:

We put ourselves in trouble early on. The way Tilak and Nehal batted - that was fantastic. I don't think that when we lost a couple of wickets early we thought we would even reach 180. We didn't finish well and that's why we were 10-15 runs short. We had to keep it within the stumps (while bowling). Early on in the powerplay, we gave a lot of width and I don't think it was our best day in the field as well. Overall, we did not put the right foot on the park and eventually they outplayed us. After the game, it's not the right time to go to the players, everyone is professional, they know their roles. What we can do is learn from this game and the mistakes which we have made, rectify it and make sure that we don't make it. Progression is very important. Within the team, individually, we will have to accept our flaws and maybe work on those. I don't believe much in chip and chop, I like to back players and the focus would always be to play good cricket, sticking to our plans and making sure that we don't make the basic errors. Cricket is simple, as long as we keep it simple, it's nice.

Winning skipper Sanju Samson said:

Credit has to go to all the players. Started well in the powerplay. In the middle, the left-handers played unbelievably. But the way we came back was where we won the game. Wicket looked a bit dry. But when lights come in, gets colder in the night, it gets better to bat in the second innings. People are professional enough about what to do when they get a break. I don't think he needs (advice from) anyone (Jaiswal). He's very confident. Was about one game. Let's see how the wicket is there (Lucknow) and let's see how it goes.

POTM Sandeep Sharma said:

Got fit day before yesterday only. First game after fitness, feeling good. Pitch was on slower side and lower side, so my plan was to keep bowling variations and cutters. If you're bowling in the end, you have to have big heart. Have seen in the IPL, bowlers are under the pump. Need to have big heart and keep executing plans. As you know, I went unsold two years ago. Came in as a replacement. So I'm enjoying every game.