Rajasthan Royals counters Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 1 to fight for the honours of a spot in the IPL 2022 final. Before the match, Titans skipper Hardik Pandya won the toss and opted to field first.
Contested between the two best sides of the year, the match was played at Kolkata’s Eden Gardens. While the winner of the game will win a ticket to the final, the loser will get a second shot in the Qualifier 2 on May 27.
Interestingly, the match saw Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson claiming a unique yet unwanted IPL record.
Sanju Samson surpasses MS Dhoni as Rajasthan Royals fight for the final
As mentioned earlier, Sanju Samson lost the toss to Hardik Pandya in the ongoing Qualifier 1. The latest setback meant that Samson has now lost the toss 13 times this season, thus becoming the captain with the most toss losses in any single edition of the IPL.
The Rajasthan Royals skipper surpassed Chennai Super Kings (CSK) MS Dhoni, who did so 12 times in 2012. However, Dhoni’s side played 19 matches that year, with 16 coming in the league stage alone.
In comparison, Rajasthan Royals only played 14 league games and are currently in the process of their 15th through the playoffs, thus making Sanju Samson’s track record with the toss even worse. Samson might add to his tally of bad pre-match toss calls as the Royals are set to play at least one more match this year.
The Rajasthan Royals still won nine out of their 14 league matches to finish at number 2 on the IPL 2022 points table. With two more wins, the Sanju Samson-led side will be able to claim their second title, which has been evading them since their success in the inaugural season.