Indian Premier League 2024

'Gabbar me abhi bhi wo baat hai' - Fans react as Punjab Kings register second consecutive win in last over thriller against Rajasthan Royals

Rajasthan Royals tried well but couldn't chase the 192-run target because of brilliant final over from Sam Curran.

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Akshay
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Shimron Hetmyer and Shikhar Dhawan (Source - Twitter)

Shimron Hetmyer and Shikhar Dhawan (Source - Twitter)

Shimron Hetmyer and Shikhar Dhawan (Source - Twitter) Shimron Hetmyer and Shikhar Dhawan (Source - Twitter)

The 8th match of the Indian Premier League 2023 was played between the Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals at the Barsapara Cricket Stadium in Guwahati on Wednesday, April 5. The Shikhar Dhawan-led team defeated RR by 5  runs in a nail-biting contest.

Talking about the match, the Royals won the toss and elected to bowl first. But their decision proved wrong as Punjab's young opener Prabhsimran Singh gave PBS a rollicking start, but skipper Shikhar Dhawan was struggling in the powerplay and was unable to hit boundaries.

While Prabhsimran smashed a fine 34-ball 60, Dhawan at one point was on 30 off 30. He did, however, get better as his innings progressed, Bhanuka Rajapaksa was unfortunate to be forced to retire hurt, and Jitesh Sharma played a nice little cameo, but PBKS didn't get the finish they'd have wanted. Ravi Ashwin and Jason Holder were outstanding while the others went conceded a lot of runs.

Brilliant bowling performance by Sam Curran in the last over

Chasing the target, Rajasthan came up with a surprise as they sent Ashwin instead of their regular opener Jos Buttler, but it didn't work for them as Yashasvi Jaiswal and Ashwin both were dismissed by Punjab's speedster Arshdeep Singh. However, RR suffered a huge blow when Buttler also departed in the 6th over by Nathan Ellis.

RR skipper Sanju Samson raised some hopes but departed after scoring 42 runs off 25 deliveries, which included 5 fours and 1 six. Just when seemed that Punjab will win the match convincingly, the Caribbean superpower Shimron Hetmyer and the impact player Dhruv Jurel both stitched a 62-run stand for the 7th wicket. However, Sam Curran kept his calm in the last over and defended 16 runs easily.

Meanwhile, Kolkata Knight Riders and Royals Challengers Bangalore will play their second match at the Eden Gardens against each other on Thursday, April 6. KKR lost their first match by 7 runs against PBKS while the RCB started their campaign with a wonderful win against the five-time champions Mumbai Indians.

Here's how fans reacted:

Indian Premier League Rajasthan