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Rajasthan Royals (RR) captain Sanju Samson admitted his side let the game slip away during key moments in their 58-run loss to Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Chasing a daunting target of 218, RR were bowled out for 159 in 19.2 overs, as Gujarat's bowlers ran through their batting lineup.
Speaking after the defeat, Samson pointed to lapses in execution with both bat and ball. "We gave away 15-20 runs extra in the bowling," he said, as quoted from ESPNcricinfo. "When we needed momentum, we lost wickets. With Hettie [Shimron Hetmyer], sixes and fours kept coming. But I lost my wicket and that's where we lost the game," he added. Samson played a promising knock of 41 off 28 deliveries, striking four boundaries and two sixes. He and Riyan Parag stitched together a 48-run partnership, offering brief hope before a collapse triggered by Gujarat's disciplined bowling attack. The RR skipper credited Jofra Archer for an impressive start with the ball. "The way Jofra started was good, he picked up Shubman's wicket. Then we went off plan. We planned something but they executed something else. We will have to look at that tomorrow," Samson noted. The Royals have shown strength while batting first this season, but questions have emerged about their ability to chase down big totals under pressure. Samson acknowledged the debate but reiterated the team's intent to be a well-rounded unit. "When you lose games, we also feel should we have chased? Should we have done something else?" he reflected. "We want to be a team that wins games while chasing, not just win batting first," he added. The Royals now face a critical period of introspection as they look to bounce back and regain momentum in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Recapping the match, RR skipper Sanju Samson won the toss and opted to bowl first in the match against the hosts, the Gujarat Titans. Batting first, the Shubman Gill-led side scored 2176 in their 20 overs with knocks from Sai Sudarshan (82 runs off 53), Jos Buttler (36 runs from 25 balls) and Shahrukh Khan (36 runs in 20 balls). For the visitors, two wickets each were snapped by Tushar Deshpande (2/53) & Maheesh Theekshana (2/54) and one wicket each was grabbed by Jofra Archer (1/30) and Sandeep Sharma (1/41) in their respective spells of four overs each. In reply of chasing a mammoth total of 218 runs, the Sanju Samson-led side fell short of the target by 58 runs as they were bundled out for 159 in the last over. Shimron Hetymer (52 runs off 32 balls) and Sanju Samson (41 runs from 28 balls) were the top two scorers for the side. While every GT bowler chipped in, Prasidh Krishna was the standout performer, finishing with impressive figures of 3/24. Rashid Khan and Sai Kishore picked up two wickets apiece, while Kulwant Khejroliya, Arshad Khan, and Mohammed Siraj took one each. (ANI)
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