IPL 2022, SRH vs RR Highlights: Rajasthan Royals kick-off season with commanding win over Sunrisers Hyderabad

Samson brings up his half-century in style as he hits Washington Sundar's delivery for a six. He brings up his 50 in 25 deliveries. 15 runs come off the over as RR race to 163/3 after 16 overs. 

The SRH bowler are not having a great time as Samson and Padikkal combine to add 10 runs in the over bowled by Umran Malik. The good news for SRH is that Malik cleaned up Padikkal on 41 (29) in the final delivery of the over as Rajasthan go three down after 15 overs. RR: 148/3

Devdutt Padikkal is having a great time in the middle as he middles almost everything that is being thrown at him. The left-hander smashes Romario Shepherd for two 4s and a 6 as 17 runs come off the over. RR: 138/2 (14 overs)

A good over by Umran Malik as seven runs come off it, which include two extras. Meanwhile, Padikkal and Samson have added 46(29) for the third wicket. RR: 121-2 (13 overs)

Kane Williamson hands the ball to T Natarajan, who is welcomed with a six. Slightly short and Devdutt Padikkal pulls it over the mid-wicket fence. The routine continues and this time it will be a four. Natarajan pitches the ball up and Padikkal plays it straight down the ground for a four towards the long-on region. 13 runs come off the over. RR: 114/2 (12 overs)

After an expensive first over, Washington Sundar's miseries continues as Sanju Samson whacks the spinner for a six and a four. 14 runs come off it as Rajasthan edge past the 100-run mark in 11 overs. RR: 101-2 (11 overs)

Sanju Samson and Devdutt Padikkal keep the scoreboard ticking as the Rajasthan skipper hits a short ball by Romario Shepherd for a six. 9 runs come off the over. RR: 87/2 (10 overs)

Umran Malik gets the big wicket of Jos Buttler as he is caught-behind on 35(28). The umpire, however, wasn't convinced but Kane Williamson was sure he has got his man. TV replay shows there was an edge and Buttler has to take the long walk back to the dugout.

Three runs and a wicket come off the over. RR: 78/2 after 9 overs.

Abhishek Sharma is introduced in the attack and the slow left arm orthodox starts off good before being smashed for a six in the final delivery by skipper Sanju Samson. 15 runs come off the over. RR: 75/1 (8 overs)

Romario Shepherd gets a wicket and gives away just two runs in his over as Rajasthan reach 60/1 after 7 overs.

Romario Shepherd breaks the dangerous partnership between Jos Buttler & Yashasvi Jaiswal. The latter is caught by Aiden Markram on 20 (16). 

T Natarajan comes to bowl the final powerplay over as Jos Buttler and Yashasvi Jaiswal add 58 runs in the first six overs. Buttler is playing on 33 off 25 balls, while Jaiswal is batting on 20. 

Washington Sundar starts with a no-ball, which is the fourth one in just five overs. Meanwhile, Buttler fails to make the free-hit count. 

However, two sixes still come off the over as Buttler hits one, while Jaiswal smashes the other. 18 runs off the over as Rajasthan edge past the 50-run mark in 5 overs. RR: 52/0

Jos Buttler welcomes Umran Malik with a four as he swings his bat and manages to get a thick edge as the ball races towards the backward point region. He follows it up with an audacious sweep, guiding the ball over the wicketkeeper's head for a maximum. 

Meanwhile, no-balls have started to hurt SRH as Umran oversteps his third delivery, which takes the edge off Buttler's bat and goes for a boundary as Abdul Samad at slips fails to hold on to it. 

Expensive over by Malik as Buttler ends it with a cracking six on the off-side. 21 runs come off it. RR: 34/0 (4 overs) 

It has been excellent bowling by Bhuvneshwar Kumar so far, however, he has already bowled two no-balls. Meanwhile, Buttler and Jaiswal combine to seven runs off the over. RR: 13/0 (3 overs)

Romario Shepherd bowls from the other end and he starts with a dot. Yashasvi Jaiswal then pushes the ball towards the third-man region in the following delivery to get off the mark. Buttler then flicks the fifth delivery, which is pitched on his pads for a four towards the mid-on region. Five runs come off the over. RR: 6/0 (2 overs)

Bhuvneshwar Kumar starts off with deliveries moving away from Jos Buttler, who is beaten on all the three occasions. He then follows it up with a deadly in-swinger, which is left by the Buttler. He also gets an edge of Buttler's bat, which is well caught by Abdul Samad at slips, unfortunate for the bowler as he oversteps. Just one extra from the over as Buttler fails to open his account. RR: 1/0 (1 over)

Jos Buttler walks in with Yashasvi Jaiswal to open the innings for Rajasthan Royals. Bhuvneshwar Kumar will lead the attack for Sunrisers Hyderabad. 

Sanju Samson: “It is a special day for the franchise as seven guys are making their debuts. Our four foreign internationals are Jos Buttler, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Trent Boult and Hetmyer. We have played a lot of games here and know what is going to happen. It looks like a very green wicket but I am sure it will help both batsmen and bowlers.” 

Kane Williamson: “We are going to have a bowl. I think it will play pretty well, the grass is short and potential dew factor, so we will try and make use of that. Most of the team has been here for a week to ten days and that has been really helpful. Really excited to get the tournament started. Every team is faced with the same challenges and it will be great to be get going. They (coaching staff) have been amazing, so much knowledge there to tap into and they are also excited.”

Rajasthan Royals: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Jos Buttler, Devdutt Padikkal, Sanju Samson(w/c), Shimron Hetmyer, Riyan Parag, Ravichandran Ashwin, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Yuzvendra Chahal, Trent Boult, Prasidh Krishna

Sunrisers Hyderabad: Abhishek Sharma, Rahul Tripathi, Kane Williamson(c), Nicholas Pooran(w), Aiden Markram, Abdul Samad, Washington Sundar, Romario Shepherd, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, T Natarajan, Umran Malik

Sunrisers Hyderabad win toss, opt to bowl first.

"First game here in Pune. The average score is 159 but the last IPL game was played way back in 2018. Not very long square boundaries - 65 meters, straight is a bit longer with 75 meters. The first thing that hits you is the greenness of the pitch. Good covering of grass and sounds very firm. There will be good amount of help for the seamers especially with the new ball. There is a fair amount of wind which keeps blowing, so dew might not be a factor. Chasing teams don't have an advantage here and that makes things interesting."

“There will be a bit of pressure but also some confidence that the franchise has trust in me. Myself and Umran Malik are confident because of that (retention) and are looking forward to doing well. This year everyone is saying I am the senior member. The role has changed, lot more responsibility has come and I will try to give my best in whatever situation. It is not that difficult to adapt to conditions, the staff that has come in are some big names and have the experience, getting to learn a lot from them. Brian Lara and Dale Steyn are helping us get better. ”

Rajasthan Royals have won three times in the last five encounters, while SRH have won twice. Will SRH settle scores today?   

“Very excited for this season. Any time at the start of the IPL it is always an exciting time. Franchises have new squads together and they will be trying to gel quickly as a team and looking forward to getting our first match underway. My math is quite simple - to get as many (runs) as I can and as quickly as I can. It is no different to anyone else. T20 keeps moving forward, guys are scoring quickly and all round the ground, trying to stay up with the curve. It is always nice coming back to the same team, lots of familiar faces in the backroom staff and that helps you get settled quickly. Preparation has been good. Lots of new faces, trying to get to know each other quickly and the great thing is lots of these guys come across each other in different franchises and different tournaments across the world. There are plenty of familiar faces even though we are a new squad.”