RR vs GT highlights: Rashid Khan hit a last-ball four as Gujarat Titans (GT) ended Rajasthan Royals’ (RR) unbeaten run in IPL 2024 with a thrilling three-wicket win. Set a target of 197, GT crossed the finishing line on the final ball of the game.
GT started their chase on a good note with openers Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan adding 64 runs for the first wicket. However, Kuldeep Sen turned the game on its head by taking three wickets in quick succession. Playing his first game of the season, he gave RR the first breakthrough by trapping Sudharsan in front of the stumps for 35 runs.
In his second over, he castled Matthew Wade (4) and Abhinav Manohar (1) to reduce GT to 79 for 3. Gill and Vijay Shankar took the score past the 100-run mark but could not bat their team to safety. Yuzvendra Chahal broke the stand between them by dismissing Shankar for 16.
On the other end, Gill completed his fifty but he too departed at a crucial time. In the 16th over when GT needed their well-set captain at the crease, he was dismissed by Chahal for 72. With 35 needed from the last two overs, it looked all over for GT.
However, Rashid and Rahul Tewatia revived their team’s hopes by collecting 20 runs off the 19th over bowled by Kuldeep. In the final over bowled by Avesh, Rashid hit two fours to bring down the equation to 5 from the last three balls. On the fifth ball, Tewatia was run out while taking the third run. With two needed off the final ball, Rashid hit a four to power his team to a thrilling win.
RR vs GT: RR innings
Earlier in the game, half-centuries from in-form Riyan Parag and captain Sanju Samson helped RR recover from a poor start to post a competitive total of 196/3 in the allotted 20 overs. The duo shared a big stand of 130 runs for the third wicket to bail their team out of trouble.
Asked to bat first, RR lost both of their openers inside the powerplay with just 42 runs on the board. Umesh Yadav gave GT the first breakthrough by dismissing Yashasvi Jaiswal for 24 runs in the fifth over before Rashid Khan sent back Jos Buttler for eight runs in the sixth over.
However, GT could not make further inroads in the game as Parag and Samson batted RR to a strong position. Both the batters were cautious at the start as RR finished the tenth over with 73 runs on the board. Parag broke the shackles in the 13th over by hitting Noor Ahmed for two sixes.
In the 14th over bowled by Mohit Sharma, Samson hit a four while Parag hit a six to complete his third fifty of IPL 2024 off 34 balls. In the 15th over, Samson took Spencer Johnson to the cleaners, hitting him for two fours and sixes as RR raced away to 134/2.
Rashid Khan bowled a tight 16th over, conceding only six before Mohit Sharma gave away 15 runs in the following over. In the same over, Samson completed his fifty as well. The partnership eventually came to an end in the 19th over when Mohit Sharma dismissed Parag for 76. The final over bowled by Umesh Yadav saw Samson and Shimron Hetmyer hit one six each to collect 19 runs and take the score close to 200 runs.
RR vs GT scorecard:
