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IPL returns to action with Punjab edging Rajasthan / Photo: ARUN SANKAR - AFP
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IPL returns to action with Punjab edging Rajasthan
Afghanistan's Azmatullah Omarzai marked the restart of the Indian Premier League with a fine all-round contribution as Punjab Kings closed in on a play-off spot with a 10-run win over Rajasthan Royals on Sunday.
It was the first completed match since the resumption of the T20 tournament which had been paused because of an India-Pakistan conflict.
Saturday's scheduled return ended in a washout with the game between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Kolkata Knight Riders abandoned without a ball being bowled.
The weather was more clement in Jaipur as Punjab posted 219-5 when they elected to bat first in high-scoring match.
Left-handed Nehal Wadhera top-scored with 70 off 37 balls before Shashank Singh made the team finish strong with his unbeaten 59.
Omarzai boosted the total with his unbeaten nine-ball 21 before he returned with two key wickets to restrict Rajasthan to 209-7.
Punjab are second in the 10-team table topped by Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Both teams are on 17 points in 12 matches.
Impact substitute Harpreet Brar stood out with figures of 3-22 with his left-arm spin and South African left-arm quick Marco Jansen took two wickets in the final over when Rajasthan needed 22 for a win.
Explosive opening knocks by Yashasvi Jaiswal and 14-year-old Suryavanshi Vaibhav Suryavanshi went in vain after the two left-handers fired Rajasthan to 89-1 in the first six overs.
Jaiswal hit a 25-ball 50 and Suryavanshi made 40 off 15 balls.
Suryavanshi, who hit an IPL century in 35 balls last month to shatter records, hammered the opposition bowlers for four fours and four sixes.
Punjab introduced spin in the fifth over and Brar dismissed both openers in quick succession, Suryavanshi chipping a leading edge to mid-off and Jaiswal, just after he had passed 50, failing to clear Mitch Owen at long-off.
The chase took another hit when skipper Sanju Samson fell for 20 off pace bowler Omarzai, who later removed the dangerous Shimron Hetmyer for 11.
Dhruv Jurel made a valiant 53 off 31 deliveries but fell to Jansen in the final over as he failed to meet the increasing asking rate.
Earlier Punjab's top three fell cheaply as Australian batsman Owen's IPL debut ended with a two-ball duck and Punjab slumped to 34-3.
The mercury in the afternoon soared above 42 degrees Celsius (107.6 degrees Fahrenheit) when Wadhera steadied the innings and hit back with his attacking play as he put on 67 with skipper Shreyas Iyer, who made 30.
Iyer fell but Wadhera kept up the charge with Shashank, who hit five fours and three sixes in his 30-ball knock.
Wadhera departed in the 16th over but Shashank and Omarzai added 60 off 24 balls.
Since the pause in the IPL, the tournament has been rescheduled with the final now set to take place on June 3.
M.Wilke--BlnAP
