Sanju Samson, the skipper of the Rajasthan Royals, expressed his disappointment over the no-ball that cost his team the Indian Premier League (IPL) match against the Sunrisers Hyderabad on Sunday. In the final over, Sandeep Sharma looked up at the sky in celebration after ‘dismissing’ Abdul Samad in the last ball, but to his horror, it turned out to be a no-ball. This mistake cost the Royals the match as Samad punished him with a six over his head to pull off an incredible four-wicket win for the Sunrisers in a dramatic finish.
Samson said that the nature of T20 cricket is such that “you can’t stop the line then.” Despite defending 17 runs off the final over, he knew that any opponent could win it, and the Sunrisers were batting well too. He was confident with Sandeep defending the final over, who had won them a game from a similar situation against Chennai Super Kings (CSK). However, the no-ball ruined their result, and it was RR’s fourth loss in the last five matches.
When asked about his thoughts moving forward in the tournament, Samson said that life is never easy playing this format, especially in this tournament, and they have to play their best standard of cricket in every game. He added that they would come back and try to do it again.
On the other hand, Aiden Markram, the skipper of the Sunrisers, was a happy man as they scripted the highest chase ever at this venue. He said that emotions turned quite quickly, and it was nice for them to get over the line. Chasing 215 isn’t easy, and the guys contributed all along to chase a big target. He praised the contributions of Abhishek, Tripathi, Phillips, Klaasy, and Samad’s finishing skills, which come with training and putting oneself under pressure.
Glenn Phillips was adjudged the Player of the Match for his 25 off 7 balls, which included three successive sixes. He said that it was a situation where it was going to go one of two ways, and he felt he left a lot out there with 17 needed off the final over. However, Samad did what he did, and they got that little bit of luck with the no-ball. He was happy to go out on top of this one and do his job, which is what the team needed that day.
