Punjab Kings batters Sam Curran and Shahrukh Khan made history on Friday by forming the highest sixth-wicket partnership for their side in the history of the Indian Premier League (IPL). Curran-Shahrukh achieved this during their side's IPL 2023 match against Rajasthan Royals in Dharamshala. The duo formed an unbeaten 73-run stand for the sixth wicket in just 37 balls. They outdid KL Rahul and Harpreet Brar, who formed a 61-run stand for PBKS against RCB in 2021. KL Rahul and Prabhsimran Singh were also involved in a 53-run stand for the sixth wicket against Sunrisers Hyderabad in August 2019. Lastly, Shahrukh was also involved in an unbeaten 52-run stand with Odean Smith for the sixth wicket against RCB in 2022.
After being put to bat first by RR, PBKS scored 187/5 in their 20 overs. They struggled against RR bowlers initially, losing their four wickets for just 50 runs in 6.3 overs. Then Jitesh Sharma (44 in 28 balls, with three fours and three sixes) and Sam Curran stitched a 64-run stand for the fifth wicket to bring PBKS back into the game.
Then in death overs, Curran (49* in 31 balls, with four boundaries and two sixes) and Shahrukh Khan (41* in 23 balls, four boundaries and two sixes) joined forces to up the run rate, taking PBKS to a competitive total. They scored 46 runs in the final two overs.
Navdeep Saini (3/40) was the pick of the bowlers for RR. Trent Boult and Adam Zampa took a wicket each.
In the chase, of 188, RR lost Jos Buttler early for a duck, his fifth this season. Then Yashasvi Jaiswal (50 in 36 balls, with eight fours) and Devdutt Padikkal (51 in 30 balls, with four boundaries and three sixes) stitched a 73-run stand for the second wicket, helping RR fight back. Later on, cameos from Shimron Hetmyer (46 in 28 balls, four boundaries and three sixes), Riyan Parag (20 in 12 balls, with one four and two sixes) and Dhruv Jurel (10* in four balls) helped RR clinch a last-over thriller win by four wickets.
Kagiso Rabada (2/40) was the pick of the bowlers for PBKS. Sam Curran, Nathan Ellis, Deepak Chahar and Arshdeep Singh took a wicket each.
Padikkal got the 'Player of the Match award for his fifty.
With this, RR is in the fifth spot in the points table with seven wins and seven losses. They have a total of 14 points. They can still climb up to the top four spots if Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) lose their last match against Gujarat Titans by a huge margin and Mumbai Indians lose their last match against Sunrisers Hyderabad too.
PBKS's IPL 2023 campaign is over. They end in the eighth position with six wins and eight losses. They have a total of 12 points.
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