Ashwin, Jaiswal help Royals seal second spot

The former’s 23-ball 40 takes the team past the finish line after Jaiswal lays the foundation; Moeen’s knock goes in vain 

R. Ashwin (40 n.o., 23b, 2x4, 3x6) donned the role of finisher to give Rajasthan Royals a five-wicket victory over Chennai Super Kings at Brabourne Stadium here on Friday.

The win helped Royals (18 points) seal the second spot and set up a clash against Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 1 in Kolkata on May 24. Lucknow Super Giants is the other team to qualify.

Pursuing a target of 151, Royals were cruising at 104 for three. Leg-spinner Prashant Solanki took out Yashasvi Jaiswal (59, 44b, 8x4, 1x6) and Shrimron Hetmyer (6, 7b, 1x4) in quick succession to set the alarm bells ringing in the dressing room.

The experienced Ashwin, undaunted by the climbing required run-rate, managed to hit the big shots to ease the pressure. Ashwin and Riyan Parag (10 n.o., 10b, 1x4) carried Royals home with two balls to spare.

Earlier, Super Kings posted a sub-par total, with only Moeen Ali (93, 57b, 13x4, 3x6) showing positive intent. Super Kings failed to make best use of a flying start provided by Moeen.

The Englishman was in full flow even as wickets tumbled around him. He got going by smashing Prasidh Krishna for 18 runs in the fourth over. Fellow pacer Trent Boult had it worse, as Moeen unleashed his full array of strokes. The New Zealand left-arm seamer was carted for five fours and a six as a whopping 26 came off that over. An upper cut, which easily cleared short third-man, brought up Moeen’s first fifty of the season.

Moeen’s pyrotechnics powered Super Kings to 75 for one after six overs. He was helped by some poor tactics from the Rajasthan Royals bowlers, who either overpitched or bowled short dollies.