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Many fans braved the heat
Rajasthan Royals thrashed Delhi Daredevils by nine wickets in their Pepsi Indian Premier League match in Jaipur on Tuesday to keep their unbeaten home record intact.
It was expectedly hot in Jaipur, but considering Rajasthan have been unbeatable at the Sawai Mansingh stadium, many fans (like the one in the picture) brave the heat to support their team, and they weren't disappointed.
Daredevils posted a competitive 154 for four, but Rajasthan won comfortably, with 13 balls to spare.
They move up to second in the table with 16 points from 12 games.
Sehwag could score just 11
Electing to bat, Delhi were off to a poor start, as Virender Sehwag (11) and CM Gautam (2) were sent back to pavilion in quick succession with scorecard reading 22 for two.
Sehwag looked in good touch, hitting James Faulkner for two consecutive fours, before the lanky Australian pacer flummoxed him with a slower ball that swung in and uprooted the off-stump.
Gautham, playing his first IPL match, departed in the next over. He chased a wide delivery outside off stump and offered a simple catch to wicketkeeper Sanju Samson off Shane Watson.
Jayawardene gifted his wicket at a crucial juncture
Skipper Mahela Jayawardene (34) and David Warner (13) tried to build the innings and picked the occasional boundary.
However, Warner failed to contribute much. He was caught by Sachin Baby off Stuart Binny at extra cover just before the first strategic time-out.
Jayawardene too tried to free his arm and hit Siddharth Trivedi for a six over mid–off before he ran out of patience and gifted his wicket.
Rohrer top-scored with an unbeaten 63
Ben Rohrer struck a fine half-century under trying conditions.
The Australian's aggressive unbeaten 39-ball 63 was laced with nine fours and a six.
Rohrer put on display some innovative shots to single-handedly guide Daredevils past 150 runs, which looked unlikely at one stage when the visitors struggling at 78 for four.
He found an able ally in Kedar Jadhav (23 no, 21 balls, 2x4). They were involved in an unbeaten 76-run partnership for the fifth wicket. The last five overs yielded 53 runs for the Daredevils.
Dravid scored a patient 53
The home team began the chase on a confident note.
Rahul Dravid led from the front, scoring a patient 53.
The Rajasthan captain's 48-ball knock was inclusive of seven hits to the fence. He and Ajinkya Rahane put on 108 runs (off just 82 balls) for the opening wicket, thereby laying the foundation for Rajasthan's easy win.
Rahane top-scored with an unbeaten 63
After his unbeaten 68 in Rajasthan's win over Mumbai Indians, Rahane had failed for six innings on the trot.
However, against Delhi he was back in his elements and made a significant contribution.
His 45-ball 63 not out was inclusive of five boundaries and a six, and besides his opening partnership with his captain, he also added 47 runs with Shane Watson (28 not out) in an unbroken second wicket stand, one that saw Rajasthan home comfortably.