Ojha takes spotlight in Royals' regal show
by sabitha[ Edit ] 2010-03-29 10:03:03
AHMEDABAD: Four overs from Muttiah Muralitharan could not shake Rajasthan Royals' resolve as Shane Warne's men put together a challenging 177-8 with huge help from opener Naman Ojha.
One over from Warne and his instinctive decisions, smart fielding from Yusuf Pathan and clever bowling at the death by Siddharth Trivedi were enough to sink Chennai Super Kings in DLF IPL-3. The visitors were pegged down to 160-6 in 20 overs and the home team sneaked home by 17 runs on the strength of teamwork at the Motera Stadium.
The RR captain deceived Suresh Raina with a slower one. Pathan's catch with an outstretched hand to send back CSK's hard-hitting opener Matthew Hayden was just the sort of inspiration the team needed.
Luck favoured Warne when his counterpart M.S. Dhoni got run out after a collision in mid-pitch with partner S. Badrinath, but winners create their own luck. Trivedi mixed up his deliveries in the closing overs to beat desperate swings from batsmen for 4-0-18-0. Albie Morkel swung three sixes to force a change in Warne mood, but RR was again celebrating at the end.
