Good morning from Jaipur, where the playing surface looked flatter and smoother than many major highways. The conditions helped deliver a familiar kind of thriller: the side batting first rarely felt fully comfortable, aware that the chase was always waiting in the rear-view mirror. If you missed last night’s pedal-to-the-metal encounter, here’s Cricbuzz Pulse—your quick two-minute IPL morning fix.
Last night in five lines
Marsh and Inglis forged a blazing opening stand as Marsh struck 109 off 50 balls.
Yash Raj Punja struck twice at key moments to slow LSG’s momentum.
LSG lost three wickets in the final over to finish on 220/5.
Sooryavanshi started slowly, while Jaiswal took a different route in the chase.
Sooryavanshi’s 93, supported by Jurel’s unbeaten 53, kept RR’s playoff hopes alive.
Oh, that happened
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi’s march toward a third IPL hundred nearly took a detour through one of the most avoidable exits. After a calamitous mix-up left him stranded on 92, he was seemingly on his way back—until Mohsin Khan provided a finish worthy of a blooper reel, missing the stumps from point-blank range. The luck did not take long to run out (for Mohsin). In the very next moment, Sooryavanshi still found his way into the act, holing out to long-on in the same over.
Pulse Awards
Akash Singh receives the no-time-write award for not reaching for any notes after dismissing Yashasvi Jaiswal—choosing instead to log the moment mentally. That decision may have been influenced by the fact that Jaiswal had already clouted five boundaries off his bowling.
Mitch Marsh wins the no-luck-nineties award for being run out while batting in the 90s for a second straight match.
Mohammed Shami takes home the cryptic-omission award, with his absence from the playing XI followed by an explanation that clarified very little.
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi earns the swift-swipe award for giving Mitch Marsh the Orange Cap for just one innings.
Talking Point
LSG’s batting followed a familiar storyline from start to finish—an explosive opening followed by a middle-overs collapse. After cruising to 149/1 at the end of 12 overs, they would have been targeting at least 240, if not more. Instead, they managed only 71 runs in the last eight overs, leaving 220 with a slightly under-par feel on a pitch that was clearly good for strokeplay.
The Chatter
Rishabh Pant delivered a lively moment right at the toss, and then another during the post-match interaction where he didn’t hold back on his thoughts. He said the defeat didn’t alter the reality that LSG “are a f**#ing good team.”
Sooryavanshi, meanwhile, wasn’t fully clear—at least not in explanation—about what his fifty celebration meant, or maybe he simply wasn’t interested in giving it away. “I just do something new every match. I don’t really plan it. There’s no meaning behind it,” he said.
Justin Langer admitted he couldn’t put into words how pleased he was for Prince Yadav, who earned a call-up to India’s ODI squad. “He’s one of a kind,” Langer added.
Riyan Parag, who missed the match due to a hamstring niggle, believed Sooryavanshi played his “best innings” last night.
Stat Snack
Vaibhav Sooryavanshi became the youngest batter to reach 500 runs in a single IPL season. It’s the kind of record that could endure for a long time—though the question remains: will it?
Gossip Column
The reason Rishabh Pant seemed so restless and twitchy during the post-match interview was reportedly because he was already bracing for the next interview. Naturally, that’s speculation, built on information that is said to be rock-solid.
Today’s watchlist
KKR’s campaign hasn’t been the smoothest this season, but they are still in the mix. They’ll need a win against MI tonight to get the ball rolling, and they’ll likely require plenty of luck as well to force their way into the playoffs. In case you were wondering how each team can qualify, here’s a look at the pathways.
Reckless prediction for today
Every interview—pre-match, mid-game, and post-match—will be completely free of expletives.
