Rajasthan Royals registered a win in their last must-win group match in the 16th edition of the Indian Premier League. They beat the Punjab Kings on Friday at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala by four wickets in a close finish. That win has kept the hopes alive for RR to make it to the next round.
Notably, RR is currently in fifth place with 14 points and a NRR of +0.148. They chased down a challenging target of 188 runs in 19.4 overs. It was PBKS that batted first and scored 187/5 in the first inning. Punjab were struggling at 114/5 in 13.5 overs.
But the few good cameos helped them end on a high. Jitesh Sharma started the flourish with his 44 off 28. In the end, an unbeaten sixth-wicket partnership between Sam Curran and Shahrukh Khan added 73 runs in 6.1 overs.
Chasing the target, Jos Buttler registered his fifth duck of the season. But Yashasvi Jaiswal (50 off 36) and Devdutt Padikkal (51 off 30) scored half-centuries to help their team win the game. In the end, Shimron Hetmyer (46 off 28), Riyan Parag (20 off 12), and Dhruv Jurel (10* off 4) sealed the deal for RR.
RR got two important points, but they are still on the verge of elimination. It will be a miracle if Rajasthan makes it to the next round. But mathematically, they are still in contention. For that, they will hope the results of MI vs SRH and RCB vs GT go their way.
Notably, both RCB and MI also have 14 points each, but if both of them lose their last group matches on Sunday, it will give RR a chance to qualify for the playoffs. As a result, RR’s all-rounder Riyan Parag made a special request to both the Gujarat Titans and Sunrisers Hyderabad to help RR qualify for the next round.
Mumbai Indians are in sixth place with 14 points and a NRR of -0.128 and will face SRH on Sunday afternoon. On the other hand, RCB is sitting at fifth with 14 points and a NRR of +0.180 and will play their last group match against GT in the evening game on Sunday.