ROLLS ROYALCE
Rajasthan cruise into final as Buttler thumps ton in top gear
Ahmedabad,
Jos Buttler extended his dream run this season with a record-equalling fourth hundred as Rajasthan Royals produced a ruthless performance to beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by seven wickets here on Friday and reach their first IPL final since the inaugural edition in 2008.
Pacer Prasidh Krishna
(3/22) came back strongly from the hammering he received in the last game to help Rajasthan restrict RCB to 157 for eight in Qualifier 2 despite a stellar
42-ball 58 from Rajat Patidar.
Buttler (106 not out off 60 balls), the leading run getter of the tournament by a fair distance, then toyed with the RCB attack to ensure the Royals romped to victory in 18.1 overs. It was only fitting that Buttler hit the winning runs as he clobbered Harshal Patel for his sixth maximum.
With his special innings, Buttler matched Virat Kohli for most hundreds in a single season. Kohli had achieved that feat in 2016.
Royals take on IPL debutants Gujarat Titans in the final here on Sunday and would be looking to emulate the special feat of the
2008 batch which won the title under the inspirational leadership of the late Shane Warne 14 seasons ago.
The pitch offered extra bounce but after Buttler provided a flying start in the company of Yashasvi Jaiswal (21 off 13 balls), the Royals had the game in the bag.
RCB, who had raised hopes for a long awaited title with a resurgent run, committed too many errors after Royals put them in to bat. After a below-par batting effort, their bowlers ran out of ideas against a marauding Buttler. Mohammad Siraj ended a forgettable IPL campaign on a dismal note. He leaked 31 runs in his first two overs, allowing the Royals to run away with game.
Buttler crossed the 800run mark this season and dispatched bowlers to all corners in his match-winning effort comprising sixes and fours. Jaiswal, who smashed Siraj for two sixes and a four in the opening over, too played his part as the Royals
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raced to 67 for one in the powerplay.
Earlier, Patidar extended his stellar run in the IPL but his effort was the lone bright spot of the RCB innings as the other batters struggled on a tricky pitch.
Royals gained the upper hand by taking five wickets in the last five overs that went for only 34 runs.
After smashing a sensational hundred in the Eliminator, Patidar played with supreme confidence after high-profile openers Virat Kohli (7) and Faf fu Plessis (25) failed to come up with impactful knocks.
Rajasthan Royals pace
duo of Trent Boult (1/28) and Krishna were impressive throughout the innings. While Boult got his inswingers going in the powerplay, Krishna, who had a horror night against Gujarat Titans in the Qualifier 1, got the ball to rise sharply from good length.
Kohli started with a spectacular six off Boult, a whip over deep square leg, before falling to a loose shot off Krishna. It was a wide ball that rose sharply and Kohli played away from his body to edge it to the wicketkeeper. The extra bounce contributed to his dismissal.