11 May 2008 - Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur : Delhi’s drops were Rajasthan’s catches! The Delhi Daredevil’s fielding, coupled with an iffy umpiring decision, allowed the Rajasthan Royals to come atop in a close and crucial encounter at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium, Jaipur. In what was a see-saw battle all the way, the young guns of Rajasthan Royals, Niraj Patel and Mahesh Rawat, held their nerves to see home the Rajasthan Royals.

Warne, once again, came good with the toss and decided to bowl first. In yet another interesting move, Warne decided to open the bowling with Dimitri Mascarenhas. The Englishman finally made his IPL debut, making him the first English player to do so. The move did not quite pay of as Mascarenhas went for 20 in his opening spell of two overs. Warne said before the start that he had a plan for Sehwag and the strong Delhi batting lineup. Sehwag, thankfully for the Royals, did not seem in his usual flow. The rival captain fell for 17 off 20 and the Royals were mighty delighted to see his back – may be indicative of things going as planned. The Royals did not have to wait too long for their next success, as Gambhir backed up too far and lined up for an easy run-out candidate. However, Dhawan sacrificed his wicket for the in-form Gambhir.

Some brilliant bowling by the Royals maintained the pressure on the Delhi Daredevils. The Daredevils lost Gambhir, bowled to Trivedi, at 68 at the halfway mark. Warne got Mascarenhas back into the attack, who struck a double blow in the form of DeVilliers and Karthik. At 100/6 at the end of the sixteenth over, the Delhi Daredevils looked like they were going to struggle setting up a competitive total.

Farveez Mahroof, coming into the side after sitting out for a few games, joined Dilshan and looked to take on the bowling. Dilshan hit Trivedi for a four and a six as Delhi got 13 off the eighteenth over. Warne came in to bowl the penultimate over, which ended being one of Warne’s worst in a long time. Mahroof hit Warne for 4 sixes as Warne’s over went for 27. That ensured that Delhi had a fighting 156 to defend. Sehwag, looking at 190 at the start of the game, would have been pleased with the effort after they were reduced to 100/6.

The Delhi Daredevil’s needed to bowl well, especially at the start of the innings to stand any chance of victory. Things did not start well as Mishra spilled a sitter off McGrath to give Smith a life. However, the bowling was extremely disciplined and Rajasthan failed to get any momentum in their innings. DeVillier’s brilliant bit of fielding led to the home team’s first dismissal as Yusuf Pathan walked back after being run-out. Delhi’s choke continued as the draught of runs caused another mix up, this time Kaif – who sacrificed his wicket for the in-form Smith. The Royals were 15/2 and their total of 21/2 at the end of the field restrictions, ended up being the lowest in the tournament thus far.

The dismissal of Kaif bought in the in-form and IPLs most valuable player – Shane Watson. The destructive Australian did not take time to settle as he took on the Delhi bowling – rather inexperienced after McGrath and Mahroof completed their initial spells. Fortune favours the brave, as Watson survived a close shout and a dropped chance, both off the bowling of Mahesh. Those proved dear for Delhi as Watson blasted 22 off a Mahesh over and did not spare Sangwan either. Suddenly at the end of the tenth over, the Royals reached 80/2 and the game seemed to have got right back in the home team’s grasp. Delhi finally got their catching right as Mahesh took a brilliant catch in the deep to get rid off a patient Smith. Mishra bowled beautifully to get Delhi back in the game as he followed up with the wicket of Jadeja, bowled off a googly. At 99/4 in the thirteenth over, the game seemed to be well poised for both teams. However, overs 15 and 16 turned the tide in favour of the Royals as they blasted 15 and 18 respectively, despite the loss of Mascarenhas.

McGrath and Sangwan bowled tidy overs thereafter, however, Delhi spilled another sitter, this time Dilshan giving Warne some respite. With 7 needed of 12 and 5 wickets intact, the Rajasthan Royals seemed on course of a comfortable victory. However, the final roll of the dice saw another twist in the epic see-saw battle. Mahroof, continued his dream run in the 19th over of this innings as well, as he bowled Shane Warne and then had Watson run-out. The controversial dismissal finally took place when Sehwag requested the square-leg umpire to refer the decision. The earlier loss of transmission, made the square leg umpire believe that replays were unavailable. Sense and justice prevailed and suddenly the Royals were seven down with seven runs still needed. Successive dot balls and a single meant that the penultimate over yielded 1 run off the first five deliveries.

However, Niraj Patel, who has not had an outing with the bat so far, kept his nerve and drove Mahroof through the covers for four. With two needed in the last over, Rawat edged a full toss from Mahesh that raced to the fence for four. The young bloods held their nerves and secured a three-wicket win for the Royals. Shane Watson’s all-round performance, 2/21 with the ball and 74 (40-balls, 5 sixes and 5 fours) with the bat, fetched him his well-deserved third man-of-the-match for the tournament.

With this win, the Rajasthan Royals continued the supremacy on the league standings with 7 wins from 9 matches. With 14 points, the Royals retained the coveted first spot.