Rajasthan Royals vs Lucknow Super Giants, IPL 2024 Highlights: Samson, bowlers guide RR to 20-run win in Jaipur

Rajasthan Royals vs Lucknow Super Giants match summary: Rajasthan Royals defeated Lucknow Super Giants by 20 runs in Jaipur on Sunday to begin their IPL 2024 campaign on a winning note. RR rode on skipper Sanju Samson’s unbeaten 82 to post 193/4 on the board after opting to bat. The hosts were not off to a good start after batting first, as they lost Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal within the powerplay. However, Samson forged a 93-run stand with Riyan Parag (43) for the third wicket, and later a 43-run unbeaten stand with Dhruv Jurel.

LSG were off to a forgettable start to their run chase after Trent Boult struck in the first over to remove Quinton de Kock. Boult struck once again in the third over to see off Devdutt Padikkal before debutant Nandre Burger got his maiden IPL wicket in the form of Ayush Badoni.

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Skipper KL Rahul (58) and Nicholas Pooran (64*) forged an 85-run stand for the fifth wicket, but once Rahul was dismissed in the 17th over, it was always going to be an uphill task for Lucknow.

Rajasthan Royals vs Lucknow Super Giants preview: A feisty contest is on the cards when Rajasthan Royals (RR), led by Sanju Samson, host KL Rahul’s Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) at Jaipur’s Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Sunday. RR had narrowly missed the playoffs in IPL 2023 after finishing fifth with 14 points, so this presents an opportunity for the inaugural champions to start afresh.

Meanwhile, KL Rahul, who missed a majority of the IPL 2023 after he sustained a thigh injury midway through the season, returns to lead the side. However, the focus for LSG will be on if Rahul opens the innings or LSG’s new recruit Devdutt Padikkal opens with South Africa’s Quinton de Kock. Padikkal, in fact, knows Rajasthan Royals inside out having represented the team in two seasons.

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Rahul recently sustained a quadriceps injury that kept him out of four Tests against England, and also underwent a surgery for the same. LSG would hope Rahul rediscovers his form back.

Padikkal was traded to LSG from RR, and pacer Avesh Khan went the other way round. Avesh is expected to lead a three-man pace attack involving Trent Boult and Kuldeep Sen. Kuldeep, in fact, could even come in for RR as an impact player if needed. RR also has South African pacer Nandre Burger in their ranks. Burger was snapped up at the IPL 2024 auction in Dubai last year for his base price of Rs 50 lakh.

Squads:

RR: Sanju Samson (C), Ravichandran Ashwin, Yuzvendra Chahal, Prasidh Krishna, Navdeep Saini, Avesh Khan (Traded from LSG), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Kuldeep Sen, Sandeep Sharma, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel, Kunal Singh Rathore, Jos Buttler, Trent Boult, Adam Zampa, Shimron Hetmyer, Donovan Ferreira, Rovman Powell, Shubham Dubey, Tom Kohler-Cadmore, Abid Mushtaq, Nandre Burger

LSG: Amit Mishra, Ayush Badoni, Deepak Hooda, Devdutt Padikkal (T), K. Gowtham, KL Rahul (C), Krunal Pandya, Kyle Mayers, Marcus Stoinis, Mark Wood, Mayank Yadav, Mohsin Khan, Naveen Ul Haq, Nicholas Pooran, Prerak Mankad, Quinton De Kock, Ravi Bishnoi, Yash Thakur, Yudhvir Charak, Shivam Mavi, Arshin Kulkarni, Manimaran Siddharth, Ashton Turner, David Willey, Arshad Khan