Not Chris Gayle, Rajasthan Royals star names the toughest batter he's bowled to
Rajasthan Royals (RR) are currently enjoying sublime form in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL 2024), leading the points table with seven wins from eight games. In their last match against five-time champions Mumbai Indians (MI), the Royals absolutely outclassed their opposition to seal a comfortable victory.
A chief architect of that win was pacer Sandeep Sharma. Sharma managed to bag his first five-wicket haul in T20 cricket and finished with figures of 5/18 - the best in IPL 2024 so far.
Sandeep Sharma, over the years, has often turned up for unglamorous sides like Punjab Kings, Sunrisers Hyderabad and now Rajasthan Royals but went on to garner a reputation for punching above his weight.
While he toyed with MI batters on Monday night(April 22), Sandeep revealed the toughest batter he has bowled to so far.
Speaking to Indian Express, the 30-year-old revealed, “If the likes of Gayle, Suresh Raina, Virender Sehwag, and AB de Villers were still playing, their teams would have crossed the 250-run mark most of the time. For me, Raina was the most difficult batsman to bowl."
Rajasthan Royals inch closer to securing playoffs spot
Sandeep Sharma's excellent fifer and youngster Yashasvi Jaiswal's ton helped RR beat MI by a staggering 9 wickets and consolidate their chances of making it to the playoffs.
Rajasthan Royals were the inaugural IPL winners and since then, they have failed to lift the trophy for a second time. The closest they came was in IPL 2022 but ended up losing to debutant Gujarat Titans in the summit clash.
For 16 years, the IPL trophy has been eluded from them and the franchise will be hoping to break the jinx this time around.
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