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The Rajasthan Royals (RR) juggernaut continues to roll in IPL 2024, as they beat the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) comfortably by six wickets in Jaipur on Saturday, April 6.
In a high-profile face-off between world-class players from both sides, Virat Kohli and Jos Buttler shone for their respective teams. Kohli's eighth IPL hundred (113* off 72) helped RCB post a competitive target of 183 for the hosts.
However, he was eclipsed by Jos Buttler's sixth hundred (100* off 58) in the tournament as the Royals bossed Bengaluru in the chase. Faf du Plessis and Co. struggled with their fielding too, summing up RCB's season, with four losses in five games.
On that note, let's take a look at three moments from the game that grabbed the attention of fans on social media:
#3 Former RCB captain Virat Kohli's hundred & strike rate sparks debate
RCB openers Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis added 126 for the first wicket but consumed 14 overs in the process. Du Plessis departed for 44 off 33, and Kohli needed to up the ante to take his team to a competitive total.
The experiment to send Glenn Maxwell at No. 3 didn't work, and Cameron Green too couldn't make much of a meaningful contribution. Looking at how little the other RCB batters contributed, Kohli's 113* looked sensational.
However, he scored his hundred off 67 balls, which is the joint-slowest in the history of the league. Many believe the former Royal Challengers captain could have shown a bit of urgency and scored 10-15 runs more.
#2 Faf du Plessis' move of Mayank Dagar backfires
The Royal Challengers got off to a great start in their defence of 182, dismissing Yashasvi Jaiswal for a duck. Sanju Samson and Jos Buttler tried to build a partnership as Rajasthan reached 34-1 after five overs.
Buttler was enduring a rough patch in IPL 2024 and looked scratchy at the start of his innings. With the game in the balance, his wicket could have put more pressure on the hosts. However, RCB captain Faf du Plessis handed left-arm spinner Mayank Dagar the sixth over, and Buttler swiftly shifted gears.
The star opener expertly punched the first delivery of the over for a four through the covers. He then hit another boundary over mid-on before hitting a six down the ground. The carnage was completed with another boundary through the covers.
Buttler suddenly began to look at his absolute best, and fans slammed Du Plessis for giving an inexperienced bowler like Dagar the final over of the powerplay.
#1 Jos Buttler's ton is the icing on the cake for RR
RR needed just one run from the final over to win the game, but Buttler needed a six to get to his hundred. The opener rocked back and hit a delivery from Cameron Green towards mid-wicket but didn't quite time the ball as well as he would have liked to.
Both Buttler and non-striker Shimron Hetmyer anxiously looked at the trajectory of the ball as it made its way to the fence. The ball landed just beyond the boundary rope, thrilling Hetmyer and the RR dugout, as Buttler completed his hundred.
It was the cherry on top for the Royals, as their star opener wasn't in great form. They will hope that Buttler can make the most of the innings and build on the momentum. Fans were delighted to see the heartwarming emotions in the RR camp after the win.
