Kingly Maxwell and Miller knocks prove too Royal for Rajasthan

Joy Chakravarty 09:01 21/04/2014
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  • Smashing success: Glenn Maxwell (r) strikes the ball to the boundary on his way to another win-inspiring 89.

    Glenn Maxwell and David Miller put together another sensational display of leather-lashing as Kings XI Punjab made a mockery of a big total for the second successive match to emerge as the team to beat in this seventh edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

    At Sharjah Cricket Stadium, Rajasthan Royals would have thought they had enough on the board with a total of 191-5, but that was not to be the case as Maxwell and Miller blitzed the target with more than an over and seven wickets to spare.

    It was almost as good an effort as the one against Chennai Super Kings in Abu Dhabi on Friday, when Maxwell made 95 and Miller 54 as they overcame a total of 205, again with more than an over remaining.

    This time, Maxwell came in with his side in trouble at 10-2 in the third over with both Virender Sehwag and Wriddhiman Saha dismissed cheaply.

    When the 25-year-old Aussie departed in the 14th over, he had made 89 runs in just 45 balls, dealing largely in boundaries having hit six sixes and eight fours. But plenty remained to be done at that stage, and Miller took it upon himself to finish it off.

    The 24-year-old South African smashed four sixes in four different corners of the field in medium-pacer Dhawal Kulkarni’s 18th over, which yielded 27 runs and, fittingly, it was another six that ended the match when he dispatched Faulkner over cover.

    His unbeaten 51 came in just 19 balls and included six sixes, a remarkable piece of hitting that established his side's early dominance in the tournament.

    The beauty of Maxwell’s innings was that he never favoured one particular shot, or side of the field.

    In the 11th over, he hit three outrageous reverse sweeps in four balls off Rajat Bhatia to reach his 50, and then in the next over, bowled by Kulkarni, he smashed three orthodox off drives for a similar result.

    In between all of this, what cannot be overlooked was the importance of Cheteshwar Pujara’s unbeaten knock of 40 which, compared to Maxwell and Miller, appeared painfully slow and came in 38 balls. 

    But the Indian Test star was brilliant in giving the strike to the two marauders, and was the fulcrum around which all the fun happened.

    With the win, Punjab have now joined Royal Challengers Bangalore on the top of the table with a maximum four points from two matches while the Royals have one win to their name.

    Earlier, Punjab captain George Bailey won the toss and elected to field, a decision which initially looked poor despite the Kings XI's pedifgree when it comes to chasing.

    On a perfect batting wicket, Royals reached 191-5 thanks to superb batting in the middle overs from captain Shane Watson (50 off 29 balls, five fours and three sixes) and India’s under-19 star, Sanju Samson (52, 34b, 3×4, 4×6).

    Royals got off to a good start through their openers Ajinkya Rahane and Abhishek Nayar before the former was run out by a magical piece of fielding by Bailey in the last ball of third over.

    Nayar played straight to the fielder at mid-off and Rahane backed up too much as Bailey’s throw was inch-perfect.

    Watson and Samson put on 74 runs in seven overs, with some superb hitting from the pair initially looking likely to drive their side to success.

    Dropped on 12, the Aussie made Punjab pay with some powerful shots, especially towards the front of the wicket.

    Samson, who scored a century for India U-19 in the Asia Cup final at the same venue, was also in good form, and hit four beautiful lofted sixes that oozed class.

    Kings XI Punjab next take on Sunrisers Hyderabad at the same venue tomorrow, while Rajasthan Royals will be up against Chennai Super Kings on Wednesday at Dubai International Stadium.

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