Driving Naari Programme launched in Chandigarh
Jaipur, May 12
Rajasthan Royals rode on a heroic batting effort by Jos Buttler to edge out Chennai Super Kings (CSK) by four wickets in a nail-biting Indian Premier League (IPL) encounter at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium on Friday. Buttler batted through the innings to help Rajasthan overhaul a stiff 177-run target with just one ball to go. Having opened the Rajasthan innings along with Ben Stokes, Buttler continued to defy the CSK bowlers even as wickets fell at the other end. He remained unbeaten on 95 runs off just 60 balls, hitting 11 boundaries and a couple of sixes along the way.
Buttler gave the Rajasthan innings a powerful start by hitting David Willey for consecutive boundaries off the opening three balls. He hit Harbhajan Singh for two boundaries and a six in the next over. With 10 runs needed off the last four deliveries, the visitors missed a great chance when Buttler tried to hit Dwayne Bravo for a six but the ball skied up off the toe end of the bat. But there was no one in position to take the catch as Buttler ran for two runs. The England star punished the visitors for that dropped chance with a six into the stands beyond the mid-wicket boundary.
An overthrow in the next ball allowed him to complete the victory as the Rajasthan dugout erupted in celebration. Earlier, CSK posted a fighting total of 176/4. It was a fine knock by Suresh Raina (52 off 35 balls), followed by skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s unbeaten 33 and opener Shane Watson’s 39 runs which took the yellow brigade to a good total against the hosts.
