SRH vs RR, IPL 2023: Buttler, Chahal shine as Rajasthan Royals thrash Sunrisers Hyderabad by 72 runs

The Rajasthan Royals, finalists of the Indian Premier League 2022 season, made a strong statement in their opening match against SunRisers Hyderabad at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad on April 2, Sunday. The Royals dominated with both bat and ball, securing a resounding victory by 72 runs. Captain Sanju Samson, Jos Buttler, and Yashasvi Jaiswal shone with the bat, while Trent Boult and Yuzvendra Chahal dominated with the ball for the away side.

The Royals showed their full potential with the bat, scoring the sixth-highest runs in the powerplay overs in IPL history. Powered by strong starts from Yashasvi Jaiswal and Jos Buttler, the Royals reached 85 runs in the first 6 overs of the game. Buttler, who looked like he was racing away to a century, lost his wicket against the run of play in the fifth ball of the final powerplay over. Buttler's 54 off 22 set the tone for the game, and that was carried on by the likes of Jaiswal and Sanju Samson. It was only the fourth time in IPL history that the top three batters reached their half-centuries in a game.

SRH made a decent comeback in the final 10 overs of the game, conceding 81 runs. Helped by spells from Fazalhaq Farooqui (2/41) and T Natarajan (2/23), SRH brought the game back into their reach at halftime. 

However, this cannot be an excuse for the Sunrisers Hyderabad batters who appeared clueless against both pace and spin. They failed to negotiate Trent Boult in the powerplay and later struggled against Yuzvendra Chahal and Ravi Ashwin. Chahal's impressive performance of 4 wickets for 17 runs made him the first Indian bowler to reach the milestone of 300 wickets.

On the other hand, Rajasthan Royals have picked up from where they left off last season. Under the captaincy of Sanju Samson, they had a spirited campaign and even reached the finals of the tournament. While it is too early to predict if they will repeat their success, it is safe to say that they ticked most of the boxes in their opener against Sunrisers Hyderabad.

READ| IPL viral video of the day: Flying stumps, stunned Devdutt Padikkal; watch Umran Malik's fiery 149 kph delivery