Markram heroics help Lucknow edge Rajasthan in IPL thriller

Aiden Markram produced and all-round performance to help the Lucknow Super Giants edge the Rajasthan Royals by two runs in a thrilling IPL encounter at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur on Saturday night.

Markram top scored for the visitors with the bat, cracking 66 off 45 balls (5x4; 3x6), while he was backed up by Ayush Badoni, 50 off 34 (5x4; 1x6), and a stunning 10-ball cameo from Abdul Samad, as he crunched four sixes in his unbeaten 30, to help them to 180/5 in their 20 overs.

In response Rajasthan, who handed a record breaking debut to Vaibhav Suryavanshi, as he became the youngest ever IPL player at the age of 14-years and 23 days, were rewarded when he responded in kind, cracking 34 off 20 balls at the top of the order (2x4; 3x6).

Fellow opener Yashavsi Jaiswal was in imperious form, hammering 74 off 52 balls (5x4; 4x6), and captain Riyan Parag, looked good in hitting 39 off 26 (3x4; 2x6), but a late flurry of wickets saw them fall just short on 178/5.

Avesh Khan, 3/37, starred at the end with the ball, including defending nine off the last over, while Markram made the big first breakthrough as he took 1/18 from his two overs.

The Rajasthan chase got off to a flyer thanks to Jaiswal and the 14-year-old wonderkid Suryavanshi, as they hammered 85 within the first nine overs.

Suryavanshi got, what should be an incredibly long IPL career, off to the best possible start as he flat batted his first ball from Shardul Thakur for six, as 13 each came off the first three overs, before they moved onto 61/0 at the end of the powerplay.

With Rajasthan looking like they were well on course, Markram made the all important breakthrough as he had Suryavanshi stumped by captain Rishabh Pant, with the score 85/1 in the ninth over.

Nitish Rana (8), was in and out, popping an easy catch to Khan at fine leg off Thakur, leaving them on 94/2 at the halfway mark.

Jaiswal and Parag then looked to put their side into a great position to win with a 62-run partnership off 43-balls, taking them to 156/2 after 17 overs.

But needing just 24 off the last three overs with eight wickets remaining, Khan stepped up to bowl Jaiswal middle stump and trap Parag LBW in the 18th, while he had Shimron Hetmeyer (12) caught at square leg in the last over, as Lucknow fought back for a brilliant win in the end.

At the start of play Lucknow won the toss and chose to bat first, getting their innings off to a mixed start as Markram got off to a flyer, but Mitchell Marsh (4), was well caught by a diving Hetmeyer off the bowling of Jofra Archer, while Nicholas Pooran (11) was trapped LBW by Sandeep Sharma, leaving them on 46/2 by the end of the powerplay.

Captain Pant (3) struggled in his nine balls at the crease, before edging Wanindu Hasaranga to keeper Dhruv Jurel, with the score 54/3 in the eighth over.

Markram then finally found a willing partner in impact player Badoni, as they set about a 74-run partnership, by first taking their side to the halfway mark on 76/3.

Markram, who had walloped Hasaranga for back-to-back sixes at the end of the 10th over, reached his fifty with a three off Sharma in the 11th, as both batters started to pick up the scoring rate, as the 10th went for 13, 11th for 16 and 12th for 13.

But just as they looked to be setting a good platform for a big finish, Markram skied Hasaranga to Parag in the 16th over, with the score 130/4.

Badoni continued on and reached his half century with a boundary off Thushar Deshpande in the 18th, but a ball later hit him straight to Shubham Dubey at deep cover, leaving them on 143/5.

That left it to Samad for the final over fireworks as the launched 27 off Sharma, as he hammered two sixes, a two and finished with two more sixes to boost them to a defendable total in the end.

LUCKNOW SUPER GIANTS: Aiden Markram, Mitchell Marsh, Nicholas Pooran, Rishabh Pant (wk, capt), David Miller, Abdul Samad, Ravi Bishnoi, Shardul Thakur, Prince Yadav, Digvesh Rathi, Avesh Khan

RAJASTHAN ROYALS: Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubham Dubey, Riyan Parag (capt), Nitish Rana, Dhruv Jurel (wk), Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Sandeep Sharma, Tushar Deshpande