Unfazed By Yashasvi Jaiswal's Rampage, Nitish Rana Says 'I Play By My Rules!'

Rajasthan Royals ended their three-match losing streak with a convincing win over the Kolkata Knight Riders, reasserting their claim as one of the four teams to qualify for the playoffs in the 2023 edition of the IPL. The Royals won the toss and elected to bowl first. Their bowlers put up an impressive performance, restricting the Knight Riders to a score of just 149. The Royals' players were energetic on the field, chasing after every ball and putting in their best effort.

The Royals' innings began with a bang, as Yashasvi Jaiswal took on the part-time bowling of KKR skipper Nitish Rana, hitting two sixes and three fours in the over. Jaiswal went on to score the fastest fifty of the IPL, reaching the milestone in just 13 balls. He eventually scored 98 runs off just 47 balls, leading his team to victory in just 13.1 overs, with skipper Sanju Samson remaining unbeaten on 48 off 29.

Venkatesh da speaks from his _ pic.twitter.com/oBXZUqDwWu — KolkataKnightRiders (@KKRiders) May 12, 2023

Also Read: Yashasvi Jaiswal Could Replace Rohit Sharma In Team India's T20 Squad: Hints Ex-Indian Selector

After the match, Rana spoke about his decision to bowl himself and his thought process behind it. He explained that he wanted to make Jaiswal complacent by bowling a part-timer, and that he was pleased with the way things turned out. Although KKR lost the match, Venkatesh Iyer, who scored a half-century, backed Rana's decision, stating that it wasn't a bad call and that Rana had picked up crucial wickets in the past.

"The thinking was that he has been batting really well throughout the tournament and I just thought that may be a part-timer would make him complacent. When a lot of things don't go in your favour then naysayers many things but I don't care to be honest. But yes, bowling myself was in the plans and I would give credit to him, he started hitting from the first ball. Things went his way and it was his day," Rana said.

The win puts Rajasthan Royals back on track for a playoff spot, while Kolkata Knight Riders will need to win their remaining matches and hope for other results to go their way if they want to make it to the playoffs. Overall, it was an impressive performance by the Rajasthan Royals, with Jaiswal's explosive innings being the highlight of the match.