Advertisement

Samson's innings has the whole world talking!

Sanju Samson out! Punjab win by 4 runs!

11:41 PM IST - These are the nights that we live for! Sanju Samson had almost won the game for Punjab but Deepak Hooda takes his catch on wide long-off to seal a victory for Punjab. Punjab start their campaign with a thrilling victory!

 

5 runs off the last ball!

11:37 PM IST - Morris is unhappy! Samson sent him back at the very last moment! A great show of confidence by the captain! 

13 needed off 6 balls!

11:32 PM IST - Rajasthan have a historic victory on sight and they have the captain on strike "who has been absolutely magnificent" today. Arshdeep Singh to bowl the final over!

Tewatia picked by Meredith

11:27 PM IST - A cheap way to throw away his wicket here. More importantly, this gives Punjab the much-needed hope that this match is still salvageable! However, Chris Morris still has to bat! 

Sanju Samson brings up his ton!

11: 25 PM IST - What an innings this has been! He has hit every kind of shots there is in the cricket book. This 54-ball-100 will surely be talked about for ages! Rajasthan took the right decision after all! Rajasthan need 21 off 12 balls.

40 off 18 balls needed

11:19 PM IST - Samson send Shami to the boundary to squeeze in a boundary in what has been a very good over amid Rajasthan's onslaught! The captain has led the way from the front and he is in fine touch to take the team home to an unbelievable victory! 

Shami takes out Parag

11:14 PM IST - This is what experience does! KL Rahul has finally got the wicket of the dangerous-looking Parag! A wild swing and a miss on his leg side as Rahul takes the catch comfortably this time! Rahul Tewatia joins Samson in the middle! 

Parag showing the way now!

11:10 PM IST - Riyan Parag has scored 25 off just 9 balls! He has three sixes and a boundary so far and Rajasthan are still very much in the mammoth chase! Murugan Ashwin gives 20 balls in his final over! CAN WE SEE SOMETHING SPECIAL TONIGHT? 

Parag-Samson keep hopes alive

11:04 PM IST - Rajasthan need 68 runs from 30 balls. Sanju Samson (76) and Riyan Parag (12) are playing some effortless shots around the ground, but they cannot drop the intensity anymore! Murugan Ashwin takes his run-up at a crucial juncture.

Dubey departs after forging 50-run stand with Samson

10:52 PM IST - Local lad Shivam Dubey played the perfect role alongside Samson in difficult times, and just as he had started opening his hands to the familiar conditions, Arshdeep gets him caught at the boundary! Rajasthan 123/4! 

Samson brings up his 50

10:41 PM IST - Samson gets his 50 on his captaincy debut with a glorious uppercut against Meredith!

Rajasthan sit at 95/3 after 10 overs 

10:38 PM IST - Samson (41) and Dubey (11) struggle to keep Rajasthan's ship steady midway into the second innings. Rajasthan need 127 runs in 60 balls to win the game and they don't have many match-winners left to pull off the heist. 

Sanju Samson dropped, again?

10:32 PM IST - Jhonty Rhodes sits stunned in the dugout! Shahrukh Khan and Mayank Agarwal mix it up this time... Meredith's length delivery had the top edge of Samson and the captain had already started walking towards the pavilion!  

Richardson removes Buttler

10:25 PM IST - Just when Rajasthan were looking dangerous with their run rate consistently touching 10, Jhye Richardson has possibly inflicted upon them the biggest blow of the night! His yorker-length delivery almost uproots the stump. Shivam Dube comes to bat!

Rajasthan end powerplay well

10:14 PM IST - After a brilliant previous over, Arshdeep Singh proves to be expensive in the sixth over as Samson hits him for two boundaries to garner 11 runs off the last power-play over.

Meredith makes forgettable debut

10:08 PM IST - Buttler welcomes Rile Meredith with 4,4,4,4 ... This night is far from over! Rajasthan 48/2.

KL Rahul drops Samson!

10:04 PM IST - Second catch dropped in the last three overs and Punjab will be kicking themselves. A thick outside edge here and the ball travelled well into Rahul's hands. Samson makes amends with a boundary in the very next ball! Rajasthan 30/2 after 4 overs.   

Now Vohra departs!

10:01 PM IST - Arshdeep takes a blinder off Vohra... Superhuman reactions here! Hard to tell how intentional was that because Vohra had hit that hard! 

Joss Buttler comes to the crease!

Samson teaches Shami a lesson

9:57 PM IST -  Captain Samson hits two boundaries to end Shami's over as Rajasthan sit at 25/1 after three overs. 

Samson looking uncomfortable

9:55 PM IST - Shami is doing all the damage here! The pacer unleashes a heavy length ball here that skids to hit Sanju Samson around the groin! Players take a breather as Sanju is being attended to.

Eventful second over

9:51 PM IST -  Rajasthan look to settle in real quick after the early setback! Vohra takes Jhye Richardson for a boundary and a sixer but ended up giving an easy catch. But, Murugan Ashwin misses a sitter! Rajasthan 17/1 in 2 overs.

Ben Stokes OUT!

9:44 PM IST - Shami strikes early! Stokes' mishit sees the ball go way up in the air and Shami and KL Rahul comes together for it. They clash near the stumps before Rahul holds on to the ball safely. Rajasthan in deep waters already! 0/1. 

Rajasthan begin 222-run chase

9:40 PM IST - Manan Vohra and Ben Stokes open the batting for Rajasthan as Mohammad Shami ready for the run-up for Punjab. We are in for a cracker here!

Chetan concedes 5 runs in last over

9:28 PM IST - What a revelation Chetan Sakariya has turned out to be for Rajasthan! He ends his debut bowling innings with figures of 3/31! However, Punjab have a steep target of 222 for Rajasthan who have a long night ahead!  

KL Rahul departs at 91!

9:25 PM IST - Chetan strikes again! KL Rahul had connected it well to for a six but Tewatia takes a brilliant catch at the ropes. He gets the ball but soon realizes his momentum will take him beyond the ropes. He tosses the ball inside and jumps inside just in time to collect the ball. Calm as a cucumber!

SRK on the floor

9:21 PM IST - Shahrukh Khan joins KL Rahul in the 19th over and he is intelligent enough to keep the strike at Rahul's end. Mustafizur gives away an expensive 19th over, conceding 15 runs! One over to go and Rahul would want to get as much as possible!   

Chetan takes a blinder!

9:14 PM IST - Pooran has to depart for a golden duck but he won't be much disappointed given Sakariya's marvellous effort at the fine leg to send him back to the pavilion! Punjab 201/4.

Deepak Hooda returns a hero!

9:09 PM IST - Deepak Hooda is caught at long-on by Riyan Parag but what an innings! He came ahead of Nicholas Pooran to hit 64 runs off 27 balls, and brought up a 100-run stand with Rahul before returning to the pavilion!

Chetan concedes 15 in an over!

9:07 PM IST - Mixed outing for the young lad here. Started his over well with two runs in the first three balls before Hooda hit him for three consecutive boundaries!  Punjab 187/2 in 17 overs.

Punjab have 200 in sight!

8:57 PM IST: Rahul (64) and Hooda (51) are well-settled now and seeing off bowlers quite comfortably. Punjab sit at 172/2 in 17 overs.

 

Deepak Hooda in Chris Gayle mode

8:45 PM IST - Shreyas Gopal's over: 1, 6, 6, 0, 6, 1! Hooda hits five sixes in the last nine balls! 20 runs off the over! Punjab 150/2.

 

Rahul brings up his fifty!

8:37 PM IST - Different season, same Rahul! Shivam Dube brought into the attack by Samson and it proves to be costly and Rahul hits him to the stand to bring up his 22nd fifty in the tournament!

Hooda follows Rahul with two maximums as Dube is hit for three sixes in an over! Punjab end 13th over with 20 runs as Punjab stands at 130/2.  

Tewatia proves to be expensive

8:31 PM IST: 13 runs off the over... Rahul doesn't hit the brake regardless of Gayle's departure! KL Rahul on 44 now and Punjab cross 100-run mark! 

Chris Gayle out! Parag does bihu

8:26 PM IST: Ben Stokes makes amends for his previous miss, with a brilliant, athletic catch! Deepak Hooda joins Rahul. 

Parag does a Kedar here!

8:25 PM IST - After getting hit for a six in the very first ball, Parag tries an almost underarm ball! Umpire warns him about that delivery. 

50-run partnership between Gayle and Rahul

8:20 PM IST: Chris Gayle sends Rahul Tewatia to the stands on the last ball, after the southpaw was dropped on the fifth ball! Samson will be ruing these missed chances... Punjab 82/1 after nine overs! 

   

Chris Gayle hits his 350th six in Indian T20 League!

8: 1X PM IST: This is some feat! Ben Stokes is being taken to the cleaners - first by Rahul and then by the Universe Boss. Punjab get 12 runs from the over.

KL Rahul dropped by Ben Stokes!

8:09 PM IST- Samson shows courage in bringing Shreyas Gopal in the attack now and the gamble almost paid off! Stokes misses a sitter and the ball bounces over the rope for a boundary! Couldn't have asked for a better option there...

Gayle makes things worse with a cracking boundary off the fifth ball. Nothing going Rajasthan's way here. Punjab 58/ 1. 

End of Powerplay

8:04 PM IST: Morris restricts the run flow by conceding just 7 runs in the last over of the powerplay. Slow start for Punjab but Gayle and Rahul are very much capable of exploiting the bowlers!   

Nerves settling in for Punjab

7:58 PM IST: After a few moments of urgency in the first four overs, Punjab is now seeing Rahul and Gayle getting into their elements, and Gayle's straight drive boundary hints at that! 39/1 Punjab. 

Moneybag Morris in the house!

7: 54 PM IST: Punjab's priced acquisition starts decently. Rahul and Gayle deal with him cautiously as Punjab end fourth over at 31/1  

Chetan keeps Gayle quiet!

7:47 PM IST: What a story this guy has - proper rags to riches! Gayle keeps his distance from Chetan's swingers here. Punjab 22/1.   

Chetan gets Mayank Agarwal!

7:44 PM IST: Mayank beaten by pace! He made room to play on his onside but Chetan is using Wankhede's swing really well! Caught behind  

Fizz gives early scare!

7:41 PM IST: Mustafizur started well by catching KL Rahul on the pads! Unfortunately, an inexperienced Samson didn't risk a DRS review, which replays showed was plumb! Mayank ends with a boundary again! 11 runs from the over... 

Mayank Agarwal opens with a boundary!

7: 34 PM IST: From early swing to quick runs, the first over has it all! However, Punjab fans will be happy with Mayank's two boundaries to give them a strong start.    

Match Starts!

7:30 PM IST - KL Rahul and Mayank Agarwal open the batting for Punjab! Chetan Sakariya to open the bowling for Rajasthan with KL Rahul at the striker's end.

Playing XI

Captain Speaks!

7:05 PM IST - Samson: We did a good job with the auction. Morris, Stokes, Buttler, and Fizz are our overseas players. It's an honour to have Sanga alongside and he makes my job easier. Very excited about the new role.

Rahul: We wanted to bowl first, too, but having said that we have to play good cricket. Toss does play a part...I can't really point out batting or bowling; the team is coming together as one. We are happy with the new buys and hopefully, we start well. Gayle, Pooran, Richardson, and Meredith are the overseas players.

Rajasthan win the toss!

7:00 PM IST - Sanju Samson has opted to field first!

Chris Morris, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler and Mustafizur Rehman are Rajasthan's overseas players.

Riley Meredith, Jhye Richardson, Chris Gayle and Nicholas Pooran in Punjab's overseas arsenal.

Time for toss!

6:55 PM IST - Rajasthan have won all the five tosses in their last five matches, winning three of those games. Punjab, on the other hand, haven't won the toss on a single occasion in their last five matches. They have won two of those matches, though.

Records that can be broken

- Ben Stokes is 80 runs away from completing 1,000 runs in the Indian T20 League.

- KL Rahul needs 78 runs to complete 2000 Indian T20 League runs for Punjab. He will be the second batsman after Shaun Marsh to reach this landmark.

- Moses Henriques needs just 31 more runs to complete 1000 runs in the tournament.

- And the biggest of them all! Chris Gayle is one six away from reaching 350 sixes in the Indian T20 League!

Early predictions

6:10 PM IST - In case you were wondering, Team Rajasthan is tipped to triumph over the batting-heavy Punjab side. They even have a 60% chance of winning the coin toss!

Rajasthan vs Punjab player battle

Early Insights...!

Rajasthan vs Punjab Head-to-Head

6:00 PM IST - Rajasthan have dominated proceedings against Punjab in head-to-head, winning 12 of the 21 face-offs between them.

Of course, when it comes to the Wankhede, Team Punjab just comes to life. For both their records in Mumbai and other interesting stats, click here.

Betting on Buttler today? Well... don't

5:49 PM IST - SportsAdda's ambassador Brett Lee has had an interesting take on the Englishman's potential run in the Indian T20 League this season. Check out the full video here.

The venue is set for the showdown!

Let's look at the squads!

5:34 PM IST: Having the largest purse of all, Punjab were expected to busy at the auction, and they lived up to the expectations with some huge buys!

Players Bought By Punjab: Jhye Richardson (14 crores), Shahrukh Khan (5.25 crore), Riley Meredith (8 crores), Moises Henriques (4.2 crores), Dawid Malan (1.5 crores), Jalaj Saxena (30 lakh), Fabian Allen, (75 lakh) Saurabh Kumar (20 lakh), Utkarsh Singh (20 lakh)

Punjab Full Squad: KL Rahul, Arshdeep Singh, Chris Gayle, Darshan Nalkande, Harpreet Brar, Mandeep Singh, Mayank Agarwal, Mohammed Shami, M Ashwin, Nicholas Pooran, Sarfaraz Khan, Deepak Hooda, Ishan Porel, Ravi Bishnoi, Chris Jordan, Prabhsimran Singh, Jhye Richardson, Shahrukh Khan, Riley Meredith, Moises Henriques, Dawid Malan, Jalaj Saxena, Fabian Allen, Saurabh Kumar, Utkarsh Singh

Team Rajasthan wasn't behind as well and one look at their shopping says it all.

Players Bought By Rajasthan: Chris Morris (Rs 16.25 crores), Tom Curran (Rs 5,25 crores), Shivam Dube (Rs 4.40 crores), Chetan Sakariya (Rs 1.2 crores), Mustafizur Rahman (Rs 1 crore), Liam Livingstone (Rs 75 lakh), KC Cariappa (Rs 20 lakh), Kuldip Yadav (Rs 20 lakhs), Akash Singh (Rs 20 lakhs)

Rajasthan Full Squad: Sanju Samson (captain & wicketkeeper), Jos Buttler (wicketkeeper), Ben Stokes, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Manan Vohra, Anuj Rawat, Riyan Parag, David Miller, Rahul Tewatia, Mahipal Lomror, Shreyas Gopal, Mayank Markande, Jofra Archer, Andrew Tye, Jaydev Unadkat, Kartik Tyagi, Shivam Dube, Chris Morris, Mustafizur Rahman, Chetan Sakariya, KC Cariappa, Liam Livingstone, Kuldip Yadav, Akash Singh

Rajasthan take on Punjab in Match 4 of the Indian T20 League!

5:30 PM IST - Good evening all! Welcome to SportsAdda's live blog of the crunch clash between Rajasthan and Punjab.

After a forgettable last season, both the teams went for a heavy revamp in the mini-auction last February as multiple stars made their way. While Team Punjab has added reinforcements around their in-form captain KL Rahul, Rajasthan have taken a massive gamble of captaining an inexperienced Sanju Samson by releasing Steven Smith.

Of course, young Samson will have big shoes to fill, but after Rishabh Pant's debut in the tournament as Delhi's captain, one would be optimistic.

We will bring you all the updates on the squad, toss and the playing eleven as the match time approaches. Stay tuned! 

Advertisement

Related tags:

Indian Premier League, 2021KL RahulJos ButtlerBen Stokes Indian T20 League