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Riding on a third consecutive half-century from Jaiswal and a brilliant debut from Suryavanshi, RR were cruising in the chase of 181, as they needed 25 runs more in the last three overs.
Sanjiv Goenka was overjoyed after LSG’s 2-run win against RR (Picture credit: Screengrab from X)
Lucknow Super Giants owner Sanjiv Goenka, who has often been seen agitated during his team’s poor outings, was on Saturday filled with joy after the franchise managed to eke out a two-run win against the Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur, even as RR batting coach Vikram Rathour couldn’t process another close defeat.
Following Mitchell Starc’s heroics for the Delhi Capitals on Wednesday at home, Lucknow pacer Avesh Khan pulled off the act on Saturday against Rajasthan.
Goenka jumped out of his seat as Lucknow prevailed in the humdinger and celebrated the victory over Rajasthan. Watch the video here:
Avesh held his nerve in the death overs to help Lucknow pull off a thrilling two-run victory over Rajasthan.
The Royals were cruising at 156/2 at the end of the 17th over, needing 25 runs from three overs with eight wickets in hand.
But Avesh conceded five runs in the 18th over and took two wickets, Rajasthan stand-in skipper Riyan Parag and Yashasvi Jaiswal, before defending nine runs off the final over to finish with a match-winning 3/37.
In a tense final over, Avesh dismissed Shimron Hetmyer (12) and conceded just six runs to hand Lucknow a memorable win against Rajasthan.
It was heartbreak for the Royals, who lost from a dominant position to slump to their fourth straight defeat and sixth loss in eight games.
In the run chase, Jaiswal (74 off 52 balls) continued his roaring form with an entertaining half-century, while 14-year-old Indian Premier League’s youngest player Vaibhav Suryavanshi (34 off 20 balls) made an instant impact on his debut as the southpaws stitched 85 runs in the ninth over in a rollicking stand.
Jaiswal anchored the innings, hitting five boundaries and four sixes during his innings, but everyone was left awed by the prowess that the 14-year-old Suryavanshi showed.
LSG play their next game against the Delhi Capitals on April 22 at home. Rajasthan, on the other hand, play the Royal Challengers Bengaluru in a reverse fixture on April 24 at the latter’s home.
