Rajasthan Royals beat Punjab Kings by three wickets to become the first team to register five wins in the Indian Premier League 2024. The match could have gone either way, but timely hitting by RR lower-order batter Shimron Hetmyer helped the visiting side cross the line. The batters from both sides had a miserable day, and not even one fifty was scored, which is rare in the cash-rich league.

Batting first, PBKS scored 147/8, with Ashutosh Sharma (31 off 16) being the top run-getter. For Rajasthan, Avesh Khan and Keshav Maharaj took two wickets each.

Despite a promising opening stand between Yashasvi Jaiswal and Tanush Kotian, Sanju Samson’s team almost bottled up the chase. The two added 56 runs in 8.2 overs. Jaiswal scored the most runs for the team with 39 off 28.

Navjot Singh Sidhu, who has backed Jaiswal despite his poor returns so far, once again lauded the southpaw.

“He actually looked good today and hit glorious strokes. The best part of his innings was that he spent time at the crease, which helped him. I have been saying that this guy doesn’t have any problem. He is like Brian Lara and Micheal Slater, who were the natural striker of the ball. Jaiswal plays like them.

“Mark my words, the big score is just around the corner. He has the talent to terrorize the bowlers and he will do it in the remaining matches. If Jaiswal comes back to form, there is no way you can stop Rajasthan Royals. They will become more dangerous,” Navjot Singh Sidhu said.

Jaiswal, who came to the 17th season after scoring more than 700 runs in a Test series against England, hasn’t hit the ground running. The reason is his habit of playing too many shots at the start of his innings.

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