Ravichandran Ashwin once again proves his prowess with the bat. Only this time, he didn’t play a handy inning to save the day in a test match. But a cameo in a much-needed situation for his IPL side, Rajasthan Royals, against Delhi Capitals.
Having won the toss, DC asked Rajasthan to bat first at the Sawai Mansing Stadium.
Things went against the home side, as they lost three wickets within eight overs, with just 36 runs on the board. Their star batters, Jaiswal, Samson, and Buttler, in that order, were sent back by some good bowling from Mukesh Kumar, Khaleel Ahmed, and Kuldeep Yadav.
That is when Ravi Ashwin was promoted to bat up the order, ahead of Dhruv Jurel and even Hetmyer. One has to say that the move paid dividends almost immediately.
Joining Riyan Parag at the crease, the veteran spinner played a fabulous inning of 29 runs from just 19 balls. He initially started off slowly, which anyone would have expected of him. However, great times were guaranteed once he got the hang of things.
In his short stay at the crease, Ashwin smashed three massive sixes against Anrich Nortje and Kuldeep Yadav. None of them were flukes; all three strikes were as clean as a whistle.
His first strike came against Kuldeep Yadav in the 10th over of the game. As if that was not enough, in the very next over, he took Nortje to the cleaners. The faster he bowled, the further Ashwin sent the ball in the crowd. The promoted spinner smashed Nortje for two sixes in a space of three balls.
Two overs later, Axar Patel got the best of the batter, who was once again going for the big hit. But until then, the damage was done. He had played his part and added 54 runs for the fourth wicket with Riyan Parag.
This partnership also allowed Riyan Parag to get his eyes in, and he eventually went on to score 84 runs from 45 balls to take his team to a respectable total of 185 runs in their 20 overs.
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