IPL: Move over KL, this Rahul is the talk of the town

Tewatia (53 off 31), in at No.4, had a roller-coaster of an outing at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium here on Sunday. At the start of his innings, the southpaw struggled to put bat to ball. However, the 27-year-old activated his beast mode late on to help RR pull off a four-wicket win, a result which left his namesake and opposition captain KL Rahul stunned.

“The dugout knew that I can hit the ball long. I knew I had to believe in myself. It was a matter of one six,” said Tewatia after Rajasthan achieved the highest-ever run-chase in IPL history. “It was amazing to hit five sixes in one over. I tried to hit leg-spinner Ravi Bishnoi, but unfortunately I couldn’t. So, I had to hit the other bowlers,” he added.

With Royals needing 51 runs off the last three overs, Tewatia smashed 30 runs in the 18th over bowled by West Indian Cottrell to turn the match on its head. But prior to that, the left hander wasted deliveries at the crucial juncture, putting pressure on Sanju Samson.

Talking about it, Tewatia said: “Now, I am better. Those were the worst 20 balls I have ever played. I then began to hit, so I kept going. I will never forget this knock.”