ABU DHABI: Rajasthan Royals (RR) might have won the match but skipper Sanju Samson didn't shy away from praising Chennai Super Kings' (CSK) opening batsman Ruturaj Gaikwad on Saturday.
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Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shivam Dube'S blazing fifties helped Rajasthan Royals beat CSK by seven wickets. However, Gaikwad hogged the limelight as he slammed his maiden ton in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium in Abu Dhabi on Saturday.
Gaikwad was on 95 when he got the strike on the fifth ball of the last over. He then hammered a massive six off the last ball to reach his ton.
"Unbelievable batting by Gaikwad; we're afraid of a batsman like him. Really a lot of respect to him," said Samson during the post-match presentation.
Jaiswal smoked 50 off 21 balls while Dube slammed 64 off 42 as Rajasthan Royals reached the target of 190 with 15 balls to spare to defeat CSK.
"We are aware of the abilities of our youngsters. That's why we get disappointed when we lose matches. Our openers finished off the game in the Powerplay. Jaiswal was superb; hopefully, he'll make it big," said Samson.
"We have been discussing Shivam in the last 2-3 games. Mahipal (Lomror) did a good job in the first few games, but we thought today could be Shivam's game," he added.
With this win, RR ensured that their hopes of making it to the playoffs remain alive.
"We aren't thinking too far ahead, one match at a time," added Samson.
