With their sights set on a 200+ score, Kings XI Punjab had a fine innings with openers Mayank Agarwal and K.L. Rahul holding ground for over 180 runs before Agarwal fell to a Curran delivery—but not before crossing the ton-mark with 106 runs in 50 balls.
Rahul fell soon after at 69 runs off 54 deliveries, clearing the way for Glenn Maxwell and Nicolas Pooran to face the final four overs, taking Punjab to 223/2.
Batting at the Sharjah Stadium is expected to get easier over time, and with Jos Buttler joining the Royals in this match, the second innings could also prove a run fest for the chasing team.
Teams:
Rajasthan Royals: Jos Buttler, Steven Smith (c), Sanju Samson (w), Robin Uthappa, Rahul Tewatia, Riyan Parag, Tom Curran, Jofra Archer, Shreyas Gopal, Jaydev Unadkat, Ankit Rajpoot
Kings XI Punjab: Mayank Agarwal, KL Rahul(w/c), Nicholas Pooran, Glenn Maxwell, Karun Nair, Sarfaraz Khan, James Neesham, Murugan Ashwin, Ravi Bishnoi, Mohammed Shami, Sheldon Cottrell.
