IPL 2018, RR vs SRH: Three best decisions from the game

It was Super Sunday in the VIVO IPL as hosts Rajasthan Royals went head-to-head against a well-knit Sunrisers Hyderabad side at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur.

In the reverse fixture, the Sunrisers had walloped the Royals by nine wickets and the hosts were desperate to settle scores.

Williamson won the toss, and it is a day game, the Sunrisers captain decided to bat first. Hyderabad hoped to start well but once again they lost an early wicket in the form of Dhawan, who chopped on.

Alex Hales, who was making his IPL debut, stitched together a fine partnership with his skipper.

Both started off slowly but once they got their eye in, Hales and Williamson, in particular, began hitting the big shots.

SRH looked set for a 180+ score but Hales and Williamson fell in successive overs to bring the Royals back.

Sunrisers never really recovered from those two wickets and eventually ended up with a sub-par total of 151 for 7 in 20 overs.

Chasing 151, Rajasthan lost Tripathi early but Captain Rahane and Samson started building a valuable partnership.

While Samson was the aggressor, Rahane played second fiddle. The duo added 50+ runs before Siddharth Kaul sent Samson packing.

Samson's dismissal gave SRH hope and they clawed their way back by bagging a couple of more wickets.

Rahane was still out there in the middle but the run rate kept creeping up. SRH, as usual, bowled tightly at the death and defended another low score as they sealed an 11 run win.

Let's take a look at some of the best decisions from the game.

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#1 Drafting Hales into the playing XI

Hales made a solid knock of 45 runs

Sunrisers have been doing really well with the ball but it was their batting that needed a shakeup.

To strengthen their batting, Hales was drafted into the side. The Nottinghamshire man, who was making his IPL debut, began very cautiously.

He dispatched the bad balls away and played second fiddle Williamson, who was going great guns. Hales made a solid 45 and was involved in a terrific partnership with his skipper which laid the foundation for a big finish.

But once Hales fell, wickets kept tumbling and SRH ended up with a sub-par 151 for 7 in their allotted 20 overs.

#2 Gowtham brought back and strikes for the hosts

Gowtham had an instant impact once he came on

Krishnappa Gowtham began his first spell with a bang by going through the defences of Shikhar Dhawan.

After Dhawan's dismissal, Hales and Williamson came together and it seemed as though they would take the game away from the hosts.

Rahane then tossed the ball to Gowtham in the 14th over, who responded brilliantly by dismissing Hales.

That decision not only got Rajasthan the much-needed breakthrough but also started a mini-collapse as Sunrisers found it hard to score as wickets kept tumbling post the Hales wicket. From 109 for 1 in the 14th over, SRH ended up with just 151 for 7.

#3 Yusuf Pathan strikes gold

Pathan got the big wicket of Stokes

After losing Tripathi early, Rahane and Samson joined hands and stitched together a fine partnership before Samson was dismissed.

Stokes walked in next and to everyone's surprise, Williamson handed part-timer Yusuf Pathan the ball.

It proved to be an outstanding decision as Pathan castled the Durham lad for a three-ball duck to give SRH a massive wicket.

That wicket brought SRH back into the contest and which silenced the crowd who came to see the home team win.

Stokes’ poor form is a concern for the Royals as they seek a top-four finish.

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