Ahmedabad, Apr 4 (PTI): Jofra Archer was supposed to bowl the 20th over of the innings as per initial plans but then Rajasthan Royals skipper Riyan Parag, on insistence from his deputy Dhruv Jurel, took an instinctive decision to ask the England speedster send down the 19th with Tushar Deshpande bowling the final over.
And it turned out to be the watershed moment of Deshpande’s start-stop career plagued by injuries as he defended 10 runs by conceding only four and restricting GT to 204 for 8 in pursuit of a victory target of 211.
“Riyan changed his mind. He (Deshpande) was going to bowl the 19th, and I was going to bowl the last. Everything that could have gone right in the field, went right, and I am proud of the boys,” Archer said after the game as he himself gave only five runs in the penultimate over.
Skipper Riyan on his part credited Jurel for the strategic shift.
“I was actually going to switch the order but credit to Jurel – he asked me to go with Jofra for the 19th. Wanted to go as fast as possible and as straight as possible,” the RR skipper said.
“It was just incredible. Took a chance – to go full and fast, and the boys delivered. I was so excited they executed the way they wanted,” Riyan added.
Archer, himself one of the best exponents of hard length and block hole deliveries, was all praise for Deshpande as he executed the blockhole deliveries perfectly.
“Practice and a game can be two different things. It is just about adapting.” Rashid Khan and Kagiso Rabada had taken GT to the brink of victory but the stand-in skipper gave a catch which was snapped by Archer in the deep.
“Initially, when he hit it, I thought it was going to six. I just ran and hoped for the best, and thankfully it went in.” On the track on offer on Saturday, Archer reckoned that taking pace-off wasn’t an option and hence both him and Deshpande bowled full tilt.
“One day, we will have to bowl pace-on and pace-off (on other days). Slower balls were not staying in, so we had to go pace-on.” Rashid said it was a great effort from his bowlers to restrict Rajasthan Royals to 210 for 6, but his team was a bit short with the bat, losing the momentum in middle.
“Well, I think, we bowled really well, especially the way they have started to restrict them under like, 210. I think it was a great effort on this wicket by the bowlers. And then we started really well with the bat too. I felt we have given a great start with the openers. And then I felt in the 12th and 13th overs, we lost back-to-back wickets,” he said.
“That’s something which really put us on the back foot. But I think, if they were there, it wasn’t that hard to score, but I think in that period of time, we just lost the momentum of the game. Well, I feel, on the wicket like this, 9-10 per over, it’s not that the hard job to be done,” he said.
Rashid said GT were on the course for a win but lost the momentum midway. PTI KHS SSC KHS PDS PDS
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