Rajasthan finishes IPL season with six-wicket win against Chennai

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Rajasthan finishes IPL season with six-wicket win against Chennai

2025-05-21 02:58 Last Updated At：03:01

NEW DELHI, India (AP) — Rajasthan Royals finished its Indian Premier League season with a six-wicket victory against Chennai Super Kings after finally chasing down the target in its last league game on Tuesday.

Rajasthan, which failed to complete the chase in eight of its nine games this season, relied on Vaibhav Suryavanshi’s half century to reach 188-4 with 17 balls to spare.

Fast bowler Akash Madhwal (3-29) was effective with his reverse swing in the final overs to restrict Chennai to 187-8 and allow Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s team to add only 17 runs in the last three overs.

The win lifted Rajasthan from the bottom of the table with eight points and Chennai now needs a huge win against table-topper Gujarat Titans in its final league match to avoid finishing last for the first time in its IPL history.

Yashasvi Jaiswal smacked five boundaries and two sixes in his brisk 36 off 19 balls as Suryavanshi was initially a mere spectator at the other end in the run-chase.

But Suryavanshi took the charge once Jaiswal was bowled by Anshul Kamboj in the fourth over as he smashed Noor Ahmad for 6-4-4 in his first over and also hit sixes against Ravindra Jadeja’s left-arm spin.

Together with captain Sanju Samson, Suryavanshi added a match-winning 98-run stand before Ashwin struck twice in the 14th over and dismissed both batters.

Ahmad clean bowled Riyan Parag for three, but Dhurv Jurel hit an unbeaten 31 off 12 balls, including three sixes and two fours, and Shimron Hetmyer made 12 not out to ensure Rajasthan reached the target with nearly three overs to spare.

Yudhvir Singh picked up three early wickets, including the key wicket of Devon Conway off his fourth ball when the left-handed New Zealander was caught at mid-off as Chennai slipped to 78-5 in the eighth over.

Ayush Mhatre (43) played risk-free shots and hit eight boundaries as he combined in a 56-run run stand with Ravichandran Ashwin (13). Dewald Brevis smashed three sixes and two fours in his quickfire 42 off 25 balls and together with Shivam Dube added a further 59 runs for the sixth wicket. But Madhwal clean bowled Brevis with a delivery that tailed back into the batter and knocked back the stumps in the 14th over.

Dube dominated the spinners and kept Chennai in the hunt for a 200-run total up until the 17th over. But Madhwal and Tushar Deshpande hit the right lengths in the last three overs as Madhwal claimed the wickets of Dube and Dhoni in the last over.

The adverse weather in South India forced IPL organizers to shift Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s final home game against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Friday to Lucknow.

It meant Bengaluru, which has already qualified for the playoffs, will also be playing its final league game against Lucknow Super Giants on May 27 at Ekna Stadium.

Last Saturday, Bengaluru’s previous home game against Kolkata Knight Riders was abandoned without a ball being bowled.

New Chandigarh and Ahmedabad will host the playoffs instead of Hyderabad and Kolkata. New Chandigarh will host the first qualifier on May 29 and the eliminator on May 30. Ahmedabad will stage the second qualifier on June 1 and the final on June 3.

Bengaluru, Gujarat Titans and Punjab Kings have already qualified for the playoffs with Mumbai Indians and Delhi Capitals fighting for the fourth spot.

AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket

Death toll from Iranian protests surpasses 2,000, activists say, as chaos recalls 1979 revolution

DUBAI, United Arab Emirates (AP) — The death toll from nationwide protests in Iran surpassed 2,000 people on Tuesday, activists said, and Iranians made phone calls abroad for the first time in days after authorities severed communications during a crackdown on demonstrators.

The number of dead climbed to at least 2,003, as reported by the U.S.-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. That figure dwarfs the death toll from any other round of protest or unrest in Iran in decades and recalls the chaos surrounding the country's 1979 Islamic Revolution. The demonstrations began a little over two weeks ago in anger over Iran's ailing economy and soon targeted the theocracy, particularly 86-year-old Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei.

Images obtained Tuesday by The Associated Press from demonstrations in Tehran showed graffiti and chants calling for Khamenei's death — something that could carry a death sentence.

Soon after the new death toll became public, U.S. President Donald Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform: “Iranian Patriots, KEEP PROTESTING - TAKE OVER YOUR INSTITUTIONS!!!”

He added: “I have cancelled all meetings with Iranian Officials until the senseless killing of protesters STOPS. HELP IS ON ITS WAY.” Trump did not give details.

Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi, speaking to the Qatar-funded satellite news network Al Jazeera in an interview aired Monday night, said he had continued to communicate with U.S. envoy Steve Witkoff.

The communication “continued before and after the protests and are still ongoing,” Araghchi said. However, “Washington’s proposed ideas and threats against our country are incompatible.” He had no immediate reaction to Trump's latest online comments.

The activist group said 1,850 of the dead were protesters and 135 were government-affiliated. Nine children were killed, along with nine civilians it said were not taking part in protests. More than 16,700 people have been detained, the group said.

With the internet down in Iran, gauging the demonstrations from abroad has grown more difficult. The AP has been unable to independently assess the toll. Iran’s government has not offered overall casualty figures.

Skylar Thompson with the Human Rights Activists News Agency told AP the new toll was shocking, particularly since it reached four times the death toll of the monthslong 2022 Mahsa Amini protests in just two weeks.

She warned that the toll would still rise: “We’re horrified, but we still think the number is conservative."

Speaking by phone for the first time since their calls were cut off from the outside world, Iranian witnesses described a heavy security presence in central Tehran, burned-out government buildings, smashed ATMs and few passersby. Meanwhile, people remain concerned about what comes next, including the possibility of a U.S. attack.

“My customers talk about Trump’s reaction while wondering if he plans a military strike against the Islamic Republic,” said shopkeeper Mahmoud, who gave only his first name out of concern for his safety. “I don’t expect Trump or any other foreign country cares about the interests of Iranians.”

Reza, a taxi driver who also gave just his first name, said protests are on many people's minds. “People — particularly young ones — are hopeless, but they talk about continuing the protests,” he said.

Several people in Tehran were able to call the AP on Tuesday and speak to a journalist. The AP bureau in Dubai, United Arab Emirates, was unable to call those numbers back. Witnesses said text messaging was still down, and internet users in Iran could connect to government-approved websites locally but nothing abroad.

Anti-riot police officers wore helmets and body armor while carrying batons, shields, shotguns and tear gas launchers, according to the witnesses. Police stood watch at major intersections. Nearby, witnesses saw members of the Revolutionary Guard's all-volunteer Basij force, who carried firearms and batons. Security officials in plainclothes were visible in public spaces.

Several banks and government offices were burned during the unrest, witnesses said. Banks struggled to complete transactions without the internet, they added.

Shops were open, though there was little foot traffic in the capital. Tehran's Grand Bazaar, where the demonstrations began Dec. 28 over the collapse of Iran's rial currency, opened Tuesday. However, a witness described speaking to multiple shopkeepers who said security forces ordered them to reopen no matter what. Iranian state media had not acknowledged that order.

The witnesses spoke on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.

It also appeared that security service personnel were searching for Starlink terminals, as people in northern Tehran reported authorities raiding apartment buildings with satellite dishes. While satellite television dishes are illegal, many in the capital have them in homes, and officials broadly had given up on enforcing the law in recent years.

On the streets, people also could be seen challenging plainclothes security officials, who were stopping passersby at random.

State television also read a statement about mortuary and morgue services being free — a signal that some likely charged high fees for the release of bodies amid the crackdown.

Khamenei, in a statement carried by state TV, praised the tens of thousands who took part in pro-government demonstrations nationwide on Monday.

“This was a warning to American politicians to stop their deceit and not rely on traitorous mercenaries,” he said. “The Iranian nation is strong and powerful and aware of the enemy.”

State TV on Monday aired chants from the crowd, which appeared to number in the tens of thousands, of “Death to America!” and “Death to Israel!” Others cried out, “Death to the enemies of God!” Iran’s attorney general has warned that anyone taking part in protests will be considered an “enemy of God,” a death-penalty charge.