After a minor blip in their performance, Rajasthan Royals bounced back to register their sixth win in the Pepsi IPL 2015 after defeating the Delhi Daredevils by fourteen runs in their new home ground - the Brabourne Stadium. With that win they marched their way to the top of the table with three games to spare. It was a complete performance by the Rajasthan Royals. The batsmen put the runs on the board and the bowlers backed it up well to complement the job done by the batsmen.
James Faulkner ended up being the most effective of the bowlers, picking up two big wickets namely Yuvraj Singh and JP Duminy. For Faulkner it was a welcoming win for the side. “It is nice for us to play some cricket and get a win after a couple of wash outs. The two games (we lost), with the washouts, I suppose made us lose a bit of momentum that we had winning our first five games,” Faulkner said in a post-match chat with iplt20.com.
“It is nice to get off to a good start at our new home ground. It was a satisfying win for everyone. We started very well and set a good platform with the bat. Ajinkya Rahane’s innings was fantastic and Karun Nair as well showed what a good player he is. Everything is looking positive at the moment. But, everyone knows the IPL is a funny game and we still have three games left. Anything can happen. We played a pretty good game of cricket today as a team,” he added, summing up his side’s victory.
It was a relatively unknown pitch and Faulkner did well to be wicket-taking and economical at the same time. He spoke about his first stint at the Brabourne Stadium and the key to bowling on that kind of a pitch. “There was a fair bit of assistance with the new ball and you had to bash it into the wicket. There was a fair bit of seam. But that is T20 cricket; you get flat tracks where you don’t get much swing or spin, but then you have tracks that turn a long way. This one had a bit of seam tonight and had good carry which was great. I think that is what everyone likes, different challenges every single time.”
Talking about challenges, Faulkner himself is yet to find his groove in the tournament so far. He hasn’t particularly set the stage on fire with his wicket-taking capabilities or run making prowess. It has been a hush-hush kind of a tournament but the challenge of putting up your best front and come out winning was something Faulkner reckoned he relished.
“Whether I am getting hit around the park or taking wickets, for me whatever form it is, whether it is T20 or ODI or Test matches, it is about winning. That is why I play the game. It is the most satisfying feeling. No matter if you are there from the start or you join halfway through, you are always expected to put up your best front. You are an overseas player at the end of the day and are expected to bring something unique to the table. Once you play international cricket, there is always going to be expectations from you in any T20 league. Every overseas player is used to that.
“I missed out on the last game since we decided to give Rusty Theron a bit of bowling because of his death bowling skills. And tonight I came back into the side. That is how the format works and we all know that. There is always a lot of class sitting on the bench. There are a lot of players in our team who haven’t got an opportunity so far in this IPL and other IPLs as well. It is a hard and tough competition and you fight for spots. People like it because it is a challenging tournament.”
Though Faulkner didn’t want to delve much into his own impressive show, he was all praise for his teammate Ajinkya Rahane who has been on a run-scoring spree. “I think he is a class player. Rajasthan Royals are very lucky to have him. He has done very well for us at the top in this IPL. Not just in the IPL he has also shown his class in international cricket. He has a bright future and all the Indian fans have a lot of hopes for his future and potential in international cricket. There is no surprise that he is getting runs in the IPL again and everyone loves him.”
James Faulkner ended up being the most effective of the bowlers, picking up two big wickets namely Yuvraj Singh and JP Duminy. For Faulkner it was a welcoming win for the side. “It is nice for us to play some cricket and get a win after a couple of wash outs. The two games (we lost), with the washouts, I suppose made us lose a bit of momentum that we had winning our first five games,” Faulkner said in a post-match chat with iplt20.com.
“It is nice to get off to a good start at our new home ground. It was a satisfying win for everyone. We started very well and set a good platform with the bat. Ajinkya Rahane’s innings was fantastic and Karun Nair as well showed what a good player he is. Everything is looking positive at the moment. But, everyone knows the IPL is a funny game and we still have three games left. Anything can happen. We played a pretty good game of cricket today as a team,” he added, summing up his side’s victory.
It was a relatively unknown pitch and Faulkner did well to be wicket-taking and economical at the same time. He spoke about his first stint at the Brabourne Stadium and the key to bowling on that kind of a pitch. “There was a fair bit of assistance with the new ball and you had to bash it into the wicket. There was a fair bit of seam. But that is T20 cricket; you get flat tracks where you don’t get much swing or spin, but then you have tracks that turn a long way. This one had a bit of seam tonight and had good carry which was great. I think that is what everyone likes, different challenges every single time.”
Talking about challenges, Faulkner himself is yet to find his groove in the tournament so far. He hasn’t particularly set the stage on fire with his wicket-taking capabilities or run making prowess. It has been a hush-hush kind of a tournament but the challenge of putting up your best front and come out winning was something Faulkner reckoned he relished.
“Whether I am getting hit around the park or taking wickets, for me whatever form it is, whether it is T20 or ODI or Test matches, it is about winning. That is why I play the game. It is the most satisfying feeling. No matter if you are there from the start or you join halfway through, you are always expected to put up your best front. You are an overseas player at the end of the day and are expected to bring something unique to the table. Once you play international cricket, there is always going to be expectations from you in any T20 league. Every overseas player is used to that.
“I missed out on the last game since we decided to give Rusty Theron a bit of bowling because of his death bowling skills. And tonight I came back into the side. That is how the format works and we all know that. There is always a lot of class sitting on the bench. There are a lot of players in our team who haven’t got an opportunity so far in this IPL and other IPLs as well. It is a hard and tough competition and you fight for spots. People like it because it is a challenging tournament.”
Though Faulkner didn’t want to delve much into his own impressive show, he was all praise for his teammate Ajinkya Rahane who has been on a run-scoring spree. “I think he is a class player. Rajasthan Royals are very lucky to have him. He has done very well for us at the top in this IPL. Not just in the IPL he has also shown his class in international cricket. He has a bright future and all the Indian fans have a lot of hopes for his future and potential in international cricket. There is no surprise that he is getting runs in the IPL again and everyone loves him.”