‘I like being a perfectionist, could’ve reached 260’: RR skipper Parag still searching for “perfect game” after eliminator win over SRH

MULLANPUR: Following his side’s win over the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the eliminator, Rajasthan Royals (RR) skipper Riyan Parag hailed Vaibhav Sooryavanshi for his masterclass, but felt that the team could have done better with the bat by reaching 260 runs at least and needs to work on finishing off the innings better.

Riyan-led RR is just one step away from sealing an IPL final with defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) as a marvellous 97 in 29 balls by Sooryavanshi and a Jofra-Archer-Nandre Burger powerplay exhibition overcame a fan-favourite, fiery and in-form Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) team with both bat and ball. Parag continues to do well in his maiden season as RR’s full-time captain.

Speaking after the match, Riyan said that he likes to be a “perfectionist” and his team could have finished better with the bat. However, he was impressed with the bowling effort.

“I think I like to be a perfectionist. I know it’s not going to be a perfect game altogether. But even today, we should have gotten 260, right? So a bit to work on that. How to finish off innings after we get a start like Vaibhav did. But with the ball, I think I was really impressed. I think we held our calm. They got a lot of runs in the second over or the first, once Ishan and Travis added a few boundaries, but I think we came back really well and a good performance altogether,” Riyan said.

About his conversations with big-hitting Sooryavanshi, he said that he does not have any and it is better to “leave him alone and have fun”. “He likes batting, like I have said before, so we get him a lot of batting practice at the nets and stuff like that. And then he goes out and does his thing,” he added.

Parag also said that his side’s final two league stage games being must-win helped them and brought out more from the team. “I feel when everything is on the line, I feel everyone works really hard towards it. And even during the season, I think it would be not fair enough to say that we were even more energised, even more focused because the game was on the line, because the season was on the line. Everyone has done that throughout the season, but especially the last two games, everyone just turned up a little bit more,” he said.

He also praised pacer Jofra Archer for continuing his dominant season with another three-fer, taking his wicket-tally to 24, calling him “one of the best in world cricket” and remarked that one “should not ask him to do anything”.

“I feel the first ball he bowled to Abhishek that I almost got a catch, but there it was wide. So I went up to Jofra. I was like, Joff, I need you to be a little straighter. And then he gets the wicket, and he asks me, smiling inside, is that straight enough for you? So I feel he is one of the best, if not the best in world cricket. And I feel when he is bowling 150 clicks, you do not ask him to bowl slow. You do not ask him to do anything. You just remind him if, at all he needs any reminding of, otherwise he just does his job,” he added.

Riyan, who has had struggles with his hamstring this season, said on a concluding note that he would be recovering ahead of the Qualifier two against GT on Friday and would not be practising.

After GT was put to bat first by SRH, Sooryavanshi (97 in 29 balls, with five fours and 12 sixes) and Dhruv Jurel (50 in 21 balls, with five fours and three sixes) played magnificent knocks as RR marched to 243/8 in 20 overs. During the chase, SRH sunk to 57/4 in the powerplay itself, despite a brief counter-attack from Ishan Kishan (33 in 11 balls, with three fours and three sixes).

Archer (3/58) and Burger (2/26) were central to RR’s success with the ball in the powerplay, skittling out SRH for just 196 in 19.2 overs. Nitish Kumar Reddy (38 in 20 balls, with three fours and two sixes) and Salil Arora (35 in 20 balls, with two fours and two sixes) put up a fight in the later stages with a 56-run sixth-wicket partnership, but Ravindra Jadeja (2/21) dimmed whatever little hope was left by removing both of them.

Sooryavanshi was named as the ‘Player of the Match’. (ANI)