In a thrilling encounter at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, the Rajasthan Royals defeated the Chennai Super Kings by 32 runs in Match No. 37 of IPL 2023 on Thursday. The Royals, led by an attacking fifty from opener Yashasvi Jaiswal (77 off 43), posted a formidable total of 202/5 in 20 overs. Apart from Jaiswal, the likes of Dhruv Jurel (34 off 15), Jos Buttler (27 off 21), and Devdutt Padikkal (24 off 12) also contributed to the Royals' big score on a batting-friendly pitch.
Chasing a huge target, CSK started off slowly, scoring just 13 runs in the first three overs. Despite a few crucial boundaries from Ruturaj Gaikwad (47) in the middle overs, the Super Kings kept losing wickets at regular intervals. They were eventually restricted to 170/6 in 20 overs, despite a valiant effort from Shivam Dube (52 off 33) who fought hard till the end.
With this win, Rajasthan moved to the top of the IPL 2023 points table with five wins from eight matches, while CSK, who also have five victories, dropped down to the third spot. The Rajasthan bowlers, led by Adam Zampa (2/34) and Ravichandran Ashwin (2/27), put up a disciplined performance to ensure their team's victory.
The Royals will next face the Kolkata Knight Riders in Match No. 41 on May 1, while CSK will take on the Mumbai Indians in Match No. 42 on May 3. Cricket fans can look forward to more exciting IPL matches in the coming days.
Brief scores: Rajasthan Royals 202/5 in 20 overs (Yashasvi Jaiswal 77, Dhruv Jurel 34; Tushar Deshpande 2-42) beat Chennai Super Kings 170/6 in 20 overs (Shivam Dube 52, Ruturaj Gaikwad 47; Adam Zampa 3-22) by 32 runs.