By CricketCountry Staff
Rajasthan Royals (RR) restricted Pune Warriors India (PWI) to a score of 125 runs in the 52nd match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2012.
Published: May 08, 2012, 05:42 PM (IST)
Edited: May 08, 2012, 05:42 PM (IST)
Shaun Tait finished with three wickets against Pune Warriors India © AFP
By CricketCountry Staff
Pune: May 8, 2012
Pune Warriors India’s (PWI) batting woes continued as they could manage only 125 for six in their stipulated 20 overs against Rajasthan Royals (RR) in an Indian Premier League match at Pune on Tuesday.
Almost all the Warriors batsmen found the going tough as Team Rajasthan bowlers kept a tight leash on the home team batsmen.
Barring IPL debutant Anustup Majumdar who scored a quickfire 30, all the other batsmen found it hard to accelerate the pace of scoring on a pitch where strokmaking seemed difficult. Even Pune’s best batsman Steve Smith struggled managing only 18 off 22 balls.
The testimony to that was only five boundaries and two sixes being hit in the entire Pune innings. Shaun Tait turned out to be the most successful bowler grabbing three for 13.
Skipper Sourav Ganguly’s wretched form with the bat continued as he struggled to get his timing right. With his opening partner Michael Clarke also not in his element, the Warriors failed to utilise the Powerplay overs.
The only confident stroke that Ganguly hit was a square cut off Johan Botha’s delivery during his innings of 14. He consumed 18 deliveries in the process.
After Tait dropped him in the deep fine leg region as he went for a mistimed hook-shot off Shane Warson’s bowling, the former Aussie international made amends as he bowled a perfect bouncer to get rid of the former India captain as Ankeet Chavan took a well-judged catch.
Clarke was then done in by Stuart Binny’s gentle inswinger that looked like hitting the leg-stump. Clarke score 16 off 18 balls. At 35 for two in the seventh over, Majumdar (30, 20 balls, 2×6, 1×4) joined hands with an out-of-form Robin Uthappa (13, 19 balls).
The pair added 42 runs for the third wicket but strangely enough it was Anustup who started taking on the Pune bowlers rather than million-dollar man Uthappa who was content taking singles.
In the 11th over, Anustup hit left-arm spinner Chavan for two sixes in the deep mid-wicket region. Showing good temperament, he then hit an inside-out shot over extra-cover off Botha but the offie got his revenge as he yorked the Bengal lad.
Uthappa’s horrible run continued as he edged one off Tait to glovesman Dishant Yagnik behind the stumps.
Brief Score: PWI 125 for 6 in 20 overs (Anustup Majumdar 30, Steven Smith 18; Shaun Tait 3 for 13, Johan Botha 1 for 25) vs RR
