The defining moment of the IPL Twenty20 match between Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders, which the hosts won by 45 runs, came in the 13th over of the chase.
Ganguly hits fighting half-century but it’s too little, too late as Kolkata Knight Riders go down to Rajasthan Royals by 45 runs
JAIPUR: The defining moment of the IPL Twenty20 match between Rajasthan Royals and Kolkata Knight Riders, which the hosts won by 45 runs, came in the 13th over of the chase.
Sourav Ganguly, on the verge of his first fifty of the series, slashed his blade to a ball pitched outside off stump. Graeme Smith came running in from the deep point boundary and scooped up a brilliant catch inches off the ground. While the Royals began celebrating, Ganguly stood his ground, forcing the umpires to refer the decision to third umpire. That’s when the stadium erupted: “Out, out, out...” the crowd screamed, booing Ganguly and cheering on Warne’s brigade of Royals. As the umpire ruled Ganguly not out, a deathly hush descended on the ground.
Just a few weeks back, could anybody have imagined that a stadium full of 25,000 Indians would hoot out Ganguly and treat Shane Warne as a demigod? But four straight wins, after the solitary loss to Delhi Daredevils, has turned Warne’s ‘underdogs’ into heroes. Suddenly, everybody is interested in the Royals and their charismatic captain.
The Royals have now nudged past the Daredevils to occupy the second spot on the points table after the Chennai Super Kings. Comparisons with Kapil’s Devils of 1983 are commonplace. For, just as the ‘underdogs’ of 1983, the Royals too have suddenly become the team to watch out for. In every game, just as in 1983, a new hero is being born. If Yusuf Pathan and the two Shanes (Watson and Warne) from Australia rose to the occasion during the previous games, Thursday was marked out for a little-known batsman’s dream debut. Perhaps it was in the name. Playing under a scorching May sun, Swapnil Arnodkar blazed his way to a sizzling 60 off 34 balls to give the Royals a flying start. Asnodkar, who plays for Goa in Ranji Trophy, hit a flurry of boundaries after a cautious start after his opening partner Smith was dismissed early in the innings. He was especially severe against Ajit Agarkar, whom he greeted with a six over long-leg.
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