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Rajasthan Royals (RR) beat Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by nine wickets to bounce back in style after three consecutive defeats in the ongoing IPL 2023. Yashasvi Jaiswal and skipper Sanju Samson starred with the bat as Rajasthan chased down 150 with 6.5 overs to spare at the Eden Gardens on Thursday, May 11.
Jaiswal, who smashed the fastest-ever IPL half-century off 13 balls, remained unbeaten on 98 off 47 balls at a staggering strike rate of 208.51, including 12 fours and five maximums. Samson also shone with the bat, scoring 48* off 29 deliveries, including five sixes and two boundaries.
Earlier, Yuzvendra Chahal was brilliant with the ball for RR, returning with figures of 4/25, while Trent Boult took a couple of wickets. Chahal surpassed Dwayne Bravo to become the IPL's highest-ever wicket taker with 187 wickets in the competition. The duo restricted the Knight Riders to a below-par total of 149/8.
A resounding victory over KKR helped the Royals reach the third spot in the IPL 2023 points table. Sanju Samson and Co. have now won six out of their 12 games. They have 12 points with a net run rate of +0.633.
RR must win back-to-back games to qualify for IPL 2023 playoffs
The Sanju Samson-led side now must register consecutive wins against the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS) to strengthen their chances of qualification berth for the IPL 2023 playoffs.
It’s worth mentioning that RCB were the fourth team to qualify with 16 points in the last edition of the IPL.
The Rajasthan Royals looked sensational in the first half of IPL 2023 until defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT), IPL’s most successful franchise Mumbai Indians (MI), and the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) handed them three straight losses to dent their chances of qualifying for the playoffs.
RR, who ended as the runners-up last year, will now look to continue their winning form and reach back-to-back finals.
However, Rajasthan's remaining two fixtures are against teams who have already defeated them this season. They lost the close games against RCB and PBKS by seven and five runs, respectively.
