IPL 2020: RR beats KXIP in thrilling run-fest at Sharjah
Sharjah: Rahul Tewatia struck five sixes in an over at the fag end of the match as Rajasthan Royals recorded the highest runchase in IPL history, beating Kings XI Punjab by four wickets in a high-scoring encounter here on Sunday.
Chasing a stiff 224 for a win, the Royals needed 51 runs from the last three overs and it seemed the fate of the match was already sealed but Tewatia turned the match on its head in a dramatic fashion, taking 30 runs from Sheldon Cottrell in the 18th over.
In an unbelievable turn of events, Tewatia (53 of 31 balls and 7 sixes), who was struggling to connect the ball after being pushed up the order ahead of the likes of Robin Uthappa, suddenly shifted gears as he hoisted Cottrell for a series of sixes much to the amazement of his team-mates and opposition players.
He was finally out in the last ball of the 19th over and after that Jofra Archer (13 not out) and Tom Curran (4 not out) took the Royals home.
It was the highest successful run-chase in IPL history, bettering the earlier record which also belongs to Royals, who had hit 217 while chasing 215 against erswhile Deccan Chargers in 2008.
Sanju Samson continued his dream run with a superb 42-ball 85, while captain Steve Smith also contributed a 27-ball 50 as RR continued their winning run.
Star England batsman Jos Buttler (4), who missed the Royal's first match as he was in quarantine, lasted just seven runs with Cotrell dismissing him in the third over.
But Samson was in a different level altogether as he kept on plundering the fours and sixes. He collected 21 runs off Glenn Maxwell in the 16th over before Mohammed Shami had him dismissed in the first ball of the next over.
Earlier, opener Mayank Agarwal outshone his captain Rahul with a maiden IPL hundred as the duo pummelled the Royals bowlers into submission to post the highest total of this season so far.
Agarwal and Rahul's 183-run stand for the opening stand was the highest partnership for any wicket so far this season as they took apart the Royals bowlers who were also wayward in their line and length.
The duo just missed the record of highest opening wicket partnership in IPL history by a mere two runs when Agarwal was out in the 17th over after hitting 10 fours and seven sixes during his magnificent 50-ball knock.
Nicholas Pooran then hit 25 not out from just eight balls while Glenn Maxwell also remained unbeaten on 13.
Rahul was content to playing second fiddle to Agarwal though the KXIP captain also made some brilliant shots during his 54-ball knock studded with seven fours and a six, continuing his rich vein of form after his 132 not out against Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Agarwal surged ahead of his captain by reaching his fifty (from 26 balls) in style with a six off Shreyas Gopal and followed it up with another maximum to bring up KXIP's 100 in the ninth over.
KXIP reached 110 at the halfway mark.
The Royals bowlers had no clue how to deal with the marauding opening duo. Only Ankit Rajpoot conceded less than 10 runs an over.
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38.23% voter turnout during the first half of the day in 14 LS segments in Karnataka
Bengaluru (PTI): An estimated 38.23 per cent turnout was reported during the first half of the day in Karnataka, where the first phase of Lok Sabha polls in 14 of 28 constituencies is underway on Friday.
According to election officials, 38.23 per cent of the electorate in Karnataka had cast their vote till 1 PM. Voting began at 7.00 am and will end by 6.00 pm.
Out of 14 segments that are going to the polls today, the highest turnout of 48.10 per cent was recorded in Dakshina Kannada, followed by Udupi-Chikmagalur 46.43 per cent, and the least 30.10 per cent in Bangalore Central.
The turnout was 31.51 per cent in Bangalore South, and 32.25 per cent in Bangalore North.
In the first phase, the Congress is contesting in all 14 seats, BJP has fielded nominees in 11 and its alliance partner JD(S), which joined the National Democratic Alliance in (NDA) in September last year, in three -- Hassan, Mandya and Kolar.
Besides those three, the segments where elections are being held on Friday are Udupi-Chikmagalur, Dakshina Kannada, Chitradurga, Tumkur, Mysore, Chamarajanagar, Bangalore Rural, Bangalore North, Bangalore Central, Bangalore South and Chikkaballapur.
In the 2019 Lok Sabha polls, the Congress and JD(S), which were in alliance and in power in the state back then, had secured just one seat each in these 14 segments. The BJP had won in 11 and ensured the victory of a party supported independent candidate in Mandya.
On Friday, Deputy Chief Minister and state Congress President D K Shivakumar along with his family cast his vote at Doddalahalli in Kanakapura of Ramanagara district. Mandya MP Sumalatha Ambareesh also cast her vote.
Cricketing legend Anil Kumble, Ayodhya Ram Mandir's Ram lalla sculptor Arun Yogiraj and former Lokayukta Justice Santosh Hegde were among prominent persons who cast their votes during the day, along with IT industry veterans Kris Gopalakrishnan and Mohandas Pai.
Biotechnology veteran Kiran Mazumdar-Shaw of Biocon, after casting her vote, in a post on social media platform X said, "As a responsible citizen of our great country, I have cast my vote. Jai hind"
Film stars Upendra, Shivarajkumar and Sudeep too exercised their franchise during the first half of the day.
