Captain's knock by Sanju Samson helps RR register win in campaign opener

Batting first after winning the toss, RR faced early setbacks with the dismissal of Jos Buttler (11) in the second over.

However, Yashasvi Jaiswal (24) and Sanju Samson provided some stability with a quickfire partnership.

Samson, along with Riyan Parag (43), later accelerated the innings, with their partnership of 93 runs off 59 balls being particularly crucial. Samson remained unbeaten on 82 off 52 balls, guiding RR to a competitive total of 193/4.

In response, LSG's chase got off to a shaky start as Trent Boult struck early, dismissing Quinton de Kock (4) in the first over.

Boult's early strikes set the tone for RR's bowling effort. Although LSG's Deepak Hooda (26) and KL Rahul (58) fought back with aggressive batting, the wickets of Hooda and Rahul at crucial junctures shifted the momentum back in RR's favor.

Despite Nicholas Pooran's valiant effort, scoring an unbeaten 64 off 41 balls, LSG fell short by 20 runs. RR's bowlers, including Sandeep Sharma (1/22), Ravichandran Ashwin (1/35), and Avesh Khan, delivered crucial overs in the slog to defend the target successfully.

Brief scores

Rajasthan Royals 193/4 in 20 overs (Sanju Samson 82*, Riyan Parag 43; Naveen-ul-Haq 2-41) beat Lucknow Super Giants 173/6 in 20 overs (Nicholas Pooran 64*, KL Rahul 58; Trent Boult 2-35) by 20 runs.

(With UNI inputs)