Rajasthan Royals

‘See the ball and hit the ball’: Rilee Rossouw reveals success mantra vs Chennai Super Kings | Cricket News

Danijones6 months ago03 mins

NEW DELHI: Key innings from Jonny Bairstow and Rilee Rossouw secured a comfortable seven-wicket victory for Punjab Kings against defending champions Chennai Super Kings in the IPL on Wednesday.Chasing a target of 163, Punjab Kings rode on Bairstow’s 46 and Rossouw’s 43 to reach the target with 13 balls to spare at Chennai’s M Chidambaram Stadium.England’s Bairstow continued his strong form from the previous match, where he scored an unbeaten 108 as Punjab chased down a record IPL target of 262 against Kolkata Knight Riders at Eden Gardens.Bairstow and Rossouw, a left-handed South African batsman, stitched a 64-run stand for the second wicket to set up the successful chase.After the Punjab Kings’ win, Rossouw revealed plans he set with Bairstow against the Yellow Brigade.“Got to give credit to the bowlers, 160 on this wicket was chaseable. The way Jonny played today, hopefully, he takes this form forward and gives us the foundation to chase it down,” Rossouw said after the match.“[On plans when he was out there with Bairstow] See the ball and hit the ball, nothing really spoken about as to how many we need, just keeping it simple. [on his dismissal] Unfortunate. It was one of those things, so focussed on hitting the ball and one of those things, I missed out. It’s never over, till it’s over, we have still got the belief in the changeroom, we will focus on our game and not on the others. Hopefully things work out,” Rossouw added.Five-time winners CSK, who have won five and lost five matches in the tournament so far, are fourth in the 10-team table, led by Rajasthan Royals.Punjab Kings are now in seventh place in the points table. With 4 wins in 10 matches, Punjab Kings have 8 points to their name.

Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals Today Match Prediction & Live Odds – IPL 2024

Vann Hiso6 months ago6 months ago06 mins

Get to Know Who will win Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals IPL T20 match and toss Prediction with Head to Head stats, Playing 11, CBTFJSK Tips, pitch report, Betting Rates, Live score & winning percentage. 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇 : Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄 : May 02, 2024𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 : 19:30 IST / 14:00 GMT𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐔𝐄 : Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium – Hyderabad, India 𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 : IPL 2024 Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals Betting Tips With an average of 42.25 from eight innings in the 2024 IPL, we recommend backing Travis Head to be Sunrisers Hyderabad’s highest run scorer in this clash. T Natarajan has a bowling strike-rate of 12.92 in this campaign and the left-arm pacer is our pick for Sunrisers Hyderabad’s top wicket taker against Rajasthan Royals.Sanju Samson has hit four half-centuries for Rajasthan Royals already this season and the skipper is our tip for their highest run scorer against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Although he went wicketless in the win over Lucknow Super Giants last time out, we are backing Yuzvendra Chahal, with 13 dismissals in the competition this year, to be Rajasthan’s top wicket taker in this game.Although there are some big hitters in both line-ups, Sanju Samson is in excellent form and we recommend selecting him to hit the most boundaries in this fixture. Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals TV channels: The fans can watch the match live on Hotstar Live Streaming: Live streaming of the match will be available on the FAFA191 Cricket Exchange India and website. Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals T20 Match Prediction & Betting Tips, IPL 2024 Sunrisers Hyderabad will host Rajasthan Royals in what will be the 50th game of the 2024 Indian Premier League. Although they have lost their last two games, Sunrisers are still in a strong position after five wins but Rajasthan Royals are way out ahead at the top of the table on 16 points. Read on as we preview this match. The fixture gets underway at the Rajiv Gandhi International Stadium, Uppal, Hyderabad at 19:30 local time on Thursday 2nd May. Defeats against Chennai Super Kings in Match 46 and Royal Challengers Bengaluru in Match 41 have seen Sunrisers Hyderabad drop down the table from a very strong position. However, we can still expect them to play an attacking brand of cricket which is likely to cause Rajasthan Royals plenty of problems. Rajasthan Royals cruised home with an over to spare in their last game and they will arrive in Hyderabad with still only one defeat so far in this IPL. They will not be scared of Sunrisers’ aggressive batting line-up and will back themselves to record another victory. SRH vs RR Match Toss PredictionWith over 55% of IPL games at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium won by the team chasing, we are predicting that both captains will want to field first ahead of this match. SRH vs RR Pitch ReportSpinners could be effective on this pitch but most are likely to be used defensively and to be asked to keep the run-rate down. It could be tough to bowl with the new ball on this surface with the ball likely to come onto the bat with good pace and we expect a par total of over 200 for the side batting first. Hyderabad Weather ReportAccording to the weather forecast there will be clear skies throughout this contest on Thursday evening. Low humidity is predicted although the temperature will be in the mid-high thirties from start to finish in Hyderabad. Read on for team previews, betting tips, latest odds, and match prediction for Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Rajasthan Royals, Indian Premier League 2024

‘Everyone loves range hitting’: KL Rahul after Lucknow Super Giants’ loss to Rajasthan Royals

Danijones6 months ago05 mins

NEW DELHI: Captain Sanju Samson led the Rajasthan Royals with an unbeaten 33-ball 71, while Dhruv Jurel contributed 52 not out off 34 balls, as they secured a seven-wicket victory over the Lucknow Super Giants in their IPL 2024 match at Bharat Ratna Shri Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana Cricket Stadium in Lucknow on Saturday.Put in to bat first, Lucknow Super Giants posted a respectable 196 for five against the Rajasthan Royals, thanks to skipper KL Rahul‘s 76 off 48 balls and Deepak Hooda’s 50 off 31 balls.Chasing 197, Sanju and Jurel formed an unbroken partnership of 121 runs for the fourth wicket to reach the target in 19 overs.After LSG lost the match, skipper KL Rahul rued the team’s poor start and said that his team fell short of 20 runs. “I think we left about 20 runs behind. We didn’t get an ideal start but with the partnership me and Hooda had was great. In these sorts of games, the set batter had to score close to a hundred after getting to 50-60. I think we were 150 after about 15 overs, should have capitalized on it a bit more. I think it is clear the team with more sixes ends up winning. We do try to hit our sixes but today we had to change our approach after those two early wickets. If Hooda pushed on and scored 20 more, and I got 20 more then we’d finish around 220. That would have been the difference, that’s the 20 runs we left behind,” KL said after the match. LSG, who are fourth in the points tally with 5 wins in 9 matches, will next face Mumbai Indians on Tuesday. “We’re seeing with every game how important it is to give the bowlers that extra cushion because they are under the pump. Everyone loves range hitting and hitting it all over the park, we are no different. It is part of the prep. Our big hitters are Stoin and Pooran who can hit those big shots. The other guys like us try to pick our areas and time the shots better,” he said.“(On Mishra and Bishnoi) There is a bit of chat before the game with the numbers and how opposition players match up. Mishra is an experienced player and today was a day we knew he could be useful with how slow he bowls and with the larger boundaries. Once the runs kept flowing, they put pressure on our bowlers. There were 2-3 overs when Krunal bowled really well and squeezed them but then they attacked the fast bowlers. I couldn’t get a good time to get Bishnoi, wanted to keep him for the backend when Rovman and Hetmyer came out to bat because we know he can bowl well to them,” the LSG captain said.

Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals Today Match Prediction & Live Odds – IPL 2024

Vann Hiso6 months ago6 months ago06 mins

Get to Know Who will win Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals, IPL 2024 Match and toss Prediction with Head to Head stats, Playing 11, CHTFJSK Tips, Live score, Win Probability & winning percentage. 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇 :Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄 : Apr 27, 2024𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 : 19:30 IST / 14:00 GMT𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐔𝐄 : Ekana Cricket Stadium – Lucknow, India 𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 : IPL 2024 Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals Betting Tips KL Rahul will be vital for LSG against a top class bowling unit. He scored 82 against CSK in last game at the same ground. Back him as LSG top batter. The pitch will help the spinners and Ravi Bishnoi, even though he has been ordinary at times, can play a big role. We are putting our money on Bishnoi as top wicket-taker as batters will be keen to attack him as other bowlers are hard to score off.Yashasvi Jaiswal scored a magnificent century in the last game against MI. Jaiswal is someone who can be backed for consistency now since he has already got a ton to his name. Back him as RR top batter. Yuzvendra Chahal will be the trump card at Ekana pitch thus he is our pick for top bowler for RR.Scoring fours is not easy on a sluggish pitch at the Ekana Stadium and given the big hitters in both teams, we feel a lot of sixes will be hit in the game. Back total sixes in the match to be over 15.5. Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals TV channels: The fans can watch the match live on Hotstar Live Streaming: Live streaming of the match will be available on the FAFA191 Cricket Exchange India and website. Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals T20 Match Prediction & Betting Tips, IPL 2024 Lucknow Super Giants will take on Rajasthan Royals in the 44th match of the IPL 2024. The game will be played at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow and will start at 7:30 PM IST on April 27. Lucknow Super Giants will be over the moon after twin wins over Chennai Super Kings. The team seems to have peaked at the right moment, with KL Rahul, Marcus Stoinis and Nicholas Pooran picking some good form. They have five wins in eight games and need three wins in their remaining six games to qualify for the playoffs. The wins over CSK have certainly made them a strong contender to qualify for playoffs. Meanwhile, the game against RR will be a tough one for LSG. RR are flying high after seven wins in eight games. A win over LSG will make them qualify for the playoffs. The conditions in Lucknow have favoured spinners thus RR won’t feel much pressure of an away game. In Chahal and Ashwin, they have two class operators. Also, the form of Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson, Riyan Parag make their batting look strong. Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals Match Toss PredictionToss will be crucial as there could be some dew in the second innings thus chasing will get slightly easier. We expect captains to win the toss and bowl first. Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals Pitch ReportThe pitch at the Ekana Stadium is usually slow and damp. It is not the best to bat, especially against the spinners. However, in the last game against CSK, they left a bit of grass so spinners did not get much help. Maybe, it was because of the opposition they were playing. We feel LSG would once again prepare a slow pitch. A score of 160-170 has been just about par here. Lucknow Weather ReportThe temperature will range between 41 and 25 degrees. The humidity will be 21 per cent and the wind speed will be 21 km/h. Read on for team previews, betting tips, latest odds, and match prediction for Lucknow Super Giants vs Rajasthan Royals, Indian Premier League 2024

“Not The Right Time To…”: Hardik Pandya’s Intriguing Captaincy Take On MI Loss

Danijones7 months ago04 mins

Mumbai Indians captain Hardik Pandya was once again at the losing end as Rajasthan Royals all but secured their progression into the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 playoffs with a thumping 9-wicket win. Hardik, who has been in the spotlight ever since he took over the franchise’s reins from Rohit Sharma, admitted that the team hasn’t been good enough in any of the three departments of the game. As mistakes as a batting unit, bowling unit, and in the field continue to cost Mumbai Indians important games, Hardik admitted it’s time to accept flaws and work on them. (IPL 2024 Points Table) “We put ourselves in trouble early on. The way Tilak and Nehal batted – that was fantastic. I don’t think that when we lost a couple of wickets early we thought we would even reach 180. We didn’t finish well and that’s why we were 10-15 runs short. We had to keep it within the stumps (while bowling). Early on in the powerplay, we gave a lot of width and I don’t think it was our best day in the field as well. Overall, we did not put the right foot in the park and eventually, they outplayed us,” Hardik said in the post-match presentation ceremony. There remain certain individuals in the game who are yet to fire this season. But, Hardik doesn’t believe in singling out players and talking to them individually. The MI skipper continues to believe in the professionalism that the players have and is hoping to see them rectify their mistakes themselves. “After the game, it’s not the right time to go to the players, everyone is professional, they know their roles. What we can do is learn from this game and the mistakes which we have made, rectify it and make sure that we don’t make it. Progression is very important. Within the team, individually, we will have to accept our flaws and maybe work on those,” he explained. Though Mumbai have lost their 5th game in 8 matches, Hardik continues to believe in the team that has been picked. He all but ruled out making big changes in the playing XI as the franchise enters a do-or-die stage in the campaign. “I don’t believe much in chip and chop, I like to back players and the focus would always be to play good cricket, sticking to our plans and making sure that we don’t make the basic errors. Cricket is simple, as long as we keep it simple, it’s nice,” he concluded. Topics mentioned in this article

‘Don’t think he needs advice from anyone’, skipper Sanju Samson hails centurion Yashasvi Jaiswal | Cricket News

Danijones7 months ago03 mins

NEW DELHI: Young opener Yashasvi Jaiswal struck form with a dazzling, unbeaten 104 as Rajasthan Royals blew away five-time champions Mumbai Indians by nine wickets on Monday to consolidated their position at the top of the IPL table.Jaiswal, whose previous best this season was 39, ended a barren run by his lofty standards with his second IPL ton as Royals’ juggernaut this season continued.Skipper Sanju Samson, who himself has been pretty fluent this season also scored a handy unbeaten 28-ball 38 in Royals’ mauling of Mumbai. Samson shared an unbeaten 109-run stand with Jaiswal as the duo took the hosts across the finish line with 8 balls to spare. After the win, Samson said he was pleased with Jaiswal returning to form and pointed out the team knew it was only a matter of one game before Jaiswal found his mojo back. “I don’t think he (Jaiswal) needs (any advice from) anyone. He’s very confident. (It) was about one game,” Samson said in the post-match presentation.Samson credited Sandeep Sharma (5/18) and Avesh Khan for Rajasthan’s comeback in the game, as a 99-run fifth-wicket stand between Tilak Varma (65) and Nehal Wadhera (49) had lifted Mumbai Indians from a difficult position.“We started well in the powerplay and then the left-handers played (Yuzvendra) Chahal and (Ravichandran) Ashwin well. But the way Sandeep and Avesh came back, that’s why we won the game,” he said.“The wicket was dry but when the lights came on, the wicket gets better to bat. The way Jos (Buttler) and Yashasvi batted, we knew we had to reset and go again. People are professionals, we backed them to do well,” Samson added.Rajasthan, who won the inaugural IPL in 2008 under late Australian hero Shane Warne, registered their seventh win in eight matches.

Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians Today Match Prediction & Live Odds – IPL 2024

Vann Hiso7 months ago7 months ago06 mins

Get to Know Who will win Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians, IPL 2024 Match and toss Prediction with Head to Head stats, Playing 11, CBTFJSK Tips, Live score & winning percentage. 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐂𝐇 : Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians𝐃𝐀𝐓𝐄 : Apr 22, 2024𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 : 19:30 IST / 14:00 GMT𝐕𝐄𝐍𝐔𝐄 : Sawai Mansingh Stadium – Jaipur, India𝐓𝐎𝐔𝐑𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 : IPL 2024 Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians Betting Tips Jos Buttler scored a hundred against PBKS and helped RR chase the highest total in IPL history. Buttler when on song is hard to stop. Back him as RR top batter against MI. Trent Boult with his left arm swing bowling possesses abilities to blow MI top order. We are expecting him to deliver a good show against MI thus he is our pick for RR top bowler.Rohit Sharma has got starts but barring a hundred against CSK, he does not have a fifty+ score. Rohit needs to ensure he plays through the innings when set at the crease, something he is very capable off. Back him as MI top batter. Jasprit Bumrah has been magnificent for MI and is the leading wicket-taker of the tournament, with 13 wickets. He is a great pick for top bowler.Both MI and RR have multiple six hitters in the team and on a venue that is known to see some of the biggest hits, expect a lot of fireworks. Total sixes in the match should be over 15.5. Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians TV channels: The fans can watch the match live on Hotstar Live Streaming: Live streaming of the match will be available on the FAFA191 Cricket Exchange India and website. Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians T20 Match Prediction & Betting Tips, IPL 2024 Rajasthan Royals will play Mumbai Indians in the 38th match of the IPL 2024. The game will be played at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur and will start at 7:30 PM IST on April 22nd. Rajasthan Royals have been the best team of the tournament so far. They are placed at the top of the table with six wins and just one defeat in seven matches. Their only defeat came against Gujarat Titans, however, that was a game they dominated for most part. The Royals look a brute force as each and every player has made a significant contribution to the team’s juggernaut. Meanwhile, MI have struggled to play best cricket. The team has lost four crucial matches and need a few back to back wins to have realistic chance of playoff qualification. MI have a strong team but somehow the team does not looks on the same page. Maybe the Hardik Pandya-Rohit Sharma captaincy change has something to do with it but the team has looked off colour. Another major concern for MI has been the lack of support for Jasprit Bumrah. While the ace Indian pacer has been outstanding, other bowlers have been hammered. Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians Match Toss PredictionToss will be crucial here as 180+ totals have been easily chased here in the previous two games. Captain winning the toss should chase again. Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians Pitch ReportThe pitch at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur is batting friendly. The new ball has done a bit but short boundaries and quick outfield has ensured that players have caught up with the run rate when the ball stops moving. Spinners have got some help though and can be the game changers. Jaipur Weather ReportIt will be a humid evening with temperature hovering around high 20s. The humidity will be 22 per cent and the wind speed will be 12 kmph. There is a 10 per cent chance of rain. Read on for team previews, betting tips, latest odds, and match prediction for Rajasthan Royals vs Mumbai Indians, Indian Premier League 2024

IPL 2024 Points Table, Orange Cap, Purple Cap: Delhi Capitals Gain Big With Win Over Gujarat Titans

Danijones7 months ago04 mins

Sharp glovework by skipper Rishabh Pant and some inspired bowling set up a crushing six-wicket win for Delhi Capitals after Gujarat Titans fell to their IPL lowest of 89 on Wednesday. Medium-pace bowler Mukesh Kumar stood out with figures of 3-14 to help bundle out Gujarat in 17.3 overs and Delhi raced to their target in 8.5 overs in Ahmedabad. Delhi, who were without injured David Warner, registered just their third win of this season to jump three places to sixth in the 10-team table. Meanwhile, GT, Punjab Kings and Mumbai Indians lost a place each to slip to the seventh, eighth and ninth spots, respectively. Rest of the points table remained unchanged with Rajasthan Royals holding the top spot. Here is the updated IPL 2024 points table: Virat Kohli led the run-scorers’ chart with 361 runs from 7 matches, while Yuzvendra Chahal was on top of wicket-takers’ list with 12 scalps from 7 games. Talking about the Gt vs DC game, Pant, who returned to this year’s IPL after surviving a horror car crash, stood unbeaten on 16 after Australian batter Jake Fraser-McGurk made a brisk 20. The 26-year-old Pant, a left-hand batsman, has scored 210 runs, including two half-centuries, in a boost to his chances of a return to the T20 World Cup in June. India fast bowler Ishant Sharma dismissed captain Shubman Gill for eight in the second over of the match and Gujarat kept losing wickets to some disciplined bowling. The fielding remained impressive after Sumit Kumar sent back Sai Sudarshan for 12 with a direct throw at the non-striker’s end. Pant was nimble behind the stumps and started with a diving catch to dismiss David Miller off Ishant. The wicketkeeper affected two stumpings when his quick work sent back Abhinav Manohar, for eight, and Shahrukh Khan, for a duck in th espace of three balls off South African spinner Tristan Stubbs. Gujarat slipped to 66-7, but Rashid Khan resisted from one end with his gritty 31 off 24 balls before he fell caught behind with Pant taking a regulation catch behind the stumps. Gujarat’s total is the lowest this season in a contrast to some big scores including two record highs of 277 and then 287 by Sunrisers Hyderabad. (With AFP Inputs) Topics mentioned in this article

“Not A Great Day For Shah Rukh Khan”: Last Over Drama Makes Actor Tense In KKR vs RR IPL 2024 Game

Danijones7 months ago03 mins

Shah Rukh Khan during the last over of KKR vs RR IPL 2024 game© Twitter It was the day of another last-over drama at the IPL 2024. Kolkata Knight Riders looked like pocketing the match against Rajasthan Royals at the Eden Gardens but Jos Buttler had some other idea. The RR star batter scored 107* as RR chased down a target of 224 – the highest ever in IPL history – on the last ball of the 20th over. With the win, RR consolidated their top spot with 12 points from seven matches while KKR are second with eight points from six matches. The match also saw KKR owner Shah Rukh Khan many different emotions. When Sunil Narine scored century, SRK’s joys knew no bounds. But then, as the last-over drama ensued with RR needing nine off six balls, a tense image of Shah Rukh was displayed on the screen. The internet reacted to the photo. Not a great day for KKR and Shahrukh Khan at the Eden Gardens. King Khan. #ShahRukhKhan #SRK #KKRvRR #IPL2024 #TATAIPL2024 pic.twitter.com/27Ml2IseD0 — Saabir Zafar (@Saabir_Saabu01) April 16, 2024 2024 IPL winner – KKR pic.twitter.com/rzM3jZ8z6X — (@DynamicSRK) April 16, 2024 From Clapping to crying…Time changed to fast for Shahrukh Khan. pic.twitter.com/qndT8RKK9O — Satya Prakash (@Satya_Prakash08) April 16, 2024 Jos Buttler swung his bat merrily on way to a 60-ball 107 and single-handedly lifted Rajasthan Royals to a sensational two-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders, pulling off the IPL’s biggest run chase on Tuesday. Asked to bat first, Sunil Narine’s 109 off 56 balls powered hosts KKR to a formidable 223/6 in front of a packed Eden Gardens. But Buttler had other ideas as he dragged the Royals, dead an buried at 121/6 in the 13th over, past the target of 224 in the last ball of the game after the visitors needed 46 runs in the last three overs, and 28 in 12 balls. With ANI inputs Topics mentioned in this article

"It's good news for Punjab as well as India": Aakash Chopra on Arsdeep Singh's performance | Cricket

They are just one knock away: Bangar on PBKS top-order | Cricket

Danijones7 months ago07 mins

Mullanpur [India], : The Punjab Kings were unable to get past the Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League encounter on Saturday at the new PCA Stadium, Mullanpur, losing the low-scoring thriller by three wickets. HT Image The bowling attack showed tremendous fighting spirit taking the match to the last over. High-intensity spells from Kagiso Rabada who recorded 2/18 in his four overs, and the stand-in Captain Sam Curran, who picked 2 wickets and gave just 25 runs in his 4 overs, ensured that the home side stretched the match till the final ball. Unlock exclusive access to the story of India’s general elections, only on the HT App. Download Now! At the post-match press conference, Punjab Kings Head of Cricket Development Sanjay Bangar praised the side for battling it out in the middle till the end. “We have been pretty consistent with the team that we have played. Most of our games have gone to the last over. We have been extremely competitive. Even tonight, at one point it felt that the game would be over soon. But the way the fielders hung on, and the bowlers kept pegging on, it just shows the character that the team possesses,” Bangar said “So yes, we are not getting the results, but it’s the kind of character and the kind of fight that is being shown by the team that is exemplary,” he added. Punjab missed skipper Shikhar Dhawan on Saturday as the opener was ruled out due to an injury. Bangar gave an update on Dhawan and said, “Well, unfortunately, we missed out on Shikhar because he has a shoulder injury. We will have to wait and see how he responds to the treatment. It seems that he could be out of action for at least 7-10 days.” Curran led the side as Captain in Dhawan’s absence on Saturday and Bangar explained that the England allrounder was always Punjab Kings’ first choice to be the stand-in Captain in case Dhawan is unavailable for any reason. “Our thought was always that because Sam has led the team in the previous year as well, he would be the stand-in Captain. He was late to arrive from the UK because of which, he wanted to have a few sessions in before the start of the season. Hence, we could not send him to Chennai for the inauguration of the season and Jitesh Sharma was sent in his place as Dhawan’s replacement for the photoshoot,” Bangar said on the subject. Punjab opener Jonny Bairstow has scored 96 runs in 6 games so far this season. On being asked about his form, the former Indian cricketer backed Bairstow and the top order to fire soon. “Yeah, it is certainly a cause of concern that the top order is not making enough runs for us but they are trying hard. They are applying themselves. All games in Mullanpur have been low-scoring games because of how the wicket behaves. In the first six overs with the new ball, the wicket tends to just lag a little bit and there is uneven bounce as well. That is another contributing factor because of which, not only for us but also for the visiting teams, the top order is facing issues here,” Bangar said. “We are constantly having conversations about what are the scoring options on such tracks and that is where the boys are putting in a lot of effort. Currently, it’s not coming off, but I am pretty sure that they are just one knock away,” he added. Bangar also praised Ashutosh Sharma, who scored an unbeaten 31 off 16 balls on the night, helping Punjab post a challenging total, and also praised Jitesh Sharma who had injured an eyebrow while training, but still batted and kept the wickets throughout the match on Saturday. “Credit to Ashutosh for the way again he is batted in the last four or five overs. Jitesh Sharma, who fought through the injury that he had. He had 15 stitches on his eyebrow, so he also contributed at a crucial juncture of the game. So these are boys of immense character and we certainly look at those positives, when we look at this game and wait for the next one to come,” he signed off. Punjab Kings will take on Mumbai Indians on Thursday, th at 19:30 hrs IST. This article was generated from an automated news agency feed without modifications to text.