Top-5 Rajasthan Royals records in the IPL
The Jaipur-based Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise, Rajasthan Royals, has unearthed some of the best Indian talents during the course of the competition's 11-year history. Players like Sanju Samson, Stuart Binny, Karun Nair, Ajinkya Rahane, and several others became prominent names in international cricket after impressing for Rajasthan Royals in the IPL.
The Royals won the first season of IPL in 2008 under the leadership of Shane Warne. 'The Wall' Rahul Dravid became the next captain of the team. Shane Watson, Ajinkya Rahane, and Steve Smith have subsequently captained this franchise, with Steve Smith named as the captain for the next edition of the IPL.
Although the Royals have not lifted the IPL trophy since their 2008 triumph, they have created some significant records in the competition's history. Here's a look at the top 5 records set by Rajasthan Royals in the IPL.
# 5: Highest successful run chase
In only the 9th match of the inaugural edition of the Indian Premier League in 2008, Rajasthan Royals successfully chased down a lofty target of 215 runs against Deccan Chargers in Hyderabad.
Batting first, the home team, riding on a century from Andrew Symonds, posted 214 runs on the board. Yusuf Pathan, with figures of 2/20, was the pick of the Rajasthan bowlers.
In reply, Graeme Smith and Pathan added 98 runs for the second wicket in just 7.2 overs to set the platform for a successful chase. Pathan scored 61 runs off 28 deliveries while the South African opener contributed with a 45-ball 71.
Following the fall of both men, Mohammad Kaif (34 off 16 balls) and captain Shane Warne (22* off 9 balls) guided the team home in the 20th over. It marked the tallest successful chase in IPL history, a mark which remains till this date. For his all-round performances, Pathan walked away with the man-of-the-match award.
# 4: Highest team score batting second (shared record)
While the Rajasthan Royals hold the proud record of pulling off the biggest run chase in IPL history, the franchise has also posted the highest score in a losing cause in the competition.
Bowling second in an away game in Chennai in the 2010 edition of the competition, hosts Chennai Super Kings rode on a Murali Vijay century to post a mammoth score of 246.
In response, openers Michael Lumb and Naman Ojha (94 not out) added 69 runs in 7 overs before the Englishman fell for 37. After Yusuf Pathan was dismissed second ball, Shane Watson slammed 5 fours and 5 sixes in his 25-ball 60. But it proved too little too late as Rajasthan fell short of their target by 23 runs.
In a 2017 IPL game against Kings XI Punjab, Mumbai Indians (223/6) subsequently matched Rajasthan's record of highest score while batting second in an IPL game. Like the Royals against Chennai in 2010, it was also an unsuccessful chase for the Mumbai-based team.
# 3: Most hat-tricks by a team (Shared record)
Rajasthan Royals, along with Kings XI Punjab, jointly hold the record for the most hat-tricks by a team in IPL history. The Jaipur-based franchise has produced four hat-trick heroes in its rich history in the competition.
Ajit Chandila became the first Rajasthan Royals bowler to achieve this feat when he dismissed Jesse Ryder, Sourav Ganguly, and Robin Uthappa off successive deliveries in an IPL 2012 game against Pune Warriors.
Two years later, against Kolkata Knight Riders, Pravin Tambe joined Chandila in the elite list by getting the better of Manish Pandey, Yusuf Pathan, and Ryan ten Doeschate. Tambe picked up this hat-trick in only two legitimate balls as Pandey was stumped off a wide ball.
After a few days, Shane Watson became the first pacer, and the third bowler, to scalp an IPL hat-trick for the Royals. Watson bowled Shikhar Dhawan off the last ball of the 5th over. Coming back on in the 17th over of the innings, the Australian dismissed Moises Henriques and Karn Sharma off the first two balls to complete his hat-trick.
Shreyas Gopal entered this club in 2019 by snaring the wickets of Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, and Marcus Stoinis off the final three balls of his spell against Royal Challengers Bangalore.
# 2: Lowest run rate in an innings
2008 IPL winners, Rajasthan Royals, held the record for the lowest team score (58) in IPL history for almost a decade before Royal Challengers Bangalore (49) took ownership of this record in 2017. However, one unwanted record which remained in Rajasthan's name was the record for the lowest run rate in an IPL innings.
During the 2009 IPL match between Royal Challengers and Rajasthan in Cape Town, the Bangalore-based franchise batted first and scored 133 runs off their allotted 20 overs. Rahul Dravid scored a fighting fifty while Dimitri Mascarenhas led the Royals bowling attack with figures of 3/20.
Instead of pulling off a regulation chase, the Royals were bowled out for a paltry 58 in 15.1 overs as Anil Kumble produced a dream spell of 5/5 off 3.1 overs. Except for the trio of Tyron Henderson, Yusuf Pathan, and Ravindra Jadeja contributing 11 runs apiece, no other Royals player registered a double digit score.
In the process, the Royals produced the lowest run rate (3.82) by any team in an IPL innings.
# 1: Fewest defeats in a season
Another unique IPL record in the name of Rajasthan Royals is the fewest defeats in a season which the team achieved during the course of their solitary victorious campaign in 2008.
In the inaugural edition of the IPL that season, the Royals lost only three games all season, winning 11 of their 14 matches to top the points table. The Shane Warne-led outfit then beat Delhi Daredevils in the qualifiers before beating Chennai Super Kings in the final.
Rajasthan's only defeats during their 2008 campaign came against Mumbai Indians, Delhi Daredevils, and Kings XI Punjab which is the fewest by any team in an IPL season. In all other seasons in the competition's 11-year history, no team has lost fewer than 4 games in a season.