Archer stars with bat and ball to power Rajasthan past Mumbai and into IPL playoffs

[p]Archer struck a 15-ball 32 after being promoted to number seven in the batting order to lift [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/rajasthan-royals/S2MQPiFG/"]Rajasthan[/a] to 205-8 from a precarious 119-5 [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/game/cricket/mumbai-indians-2eZPzJH2/rajasthan-royals-S2MQPiFG/?mid=hlLSVQHc"]at Mumbai's Wankhede Stadium.[/a][/p][p]He then turned up in his primary role as a fast bowler, taking 3-17 as [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/mumbai-indians/2eZPzJH2/"]Mumbai[/a] finished on 175-9 despite Suryakumar Yadav's 60.[/p][p]Former champions Rajasthan, who have been driven by strong performances, including by their 15-year-old batting sensation Vaibhav Soorayavanshi, knocked [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/punjab-kings/juzL6jnm/"]Punjab Kings[/a] from fourth place to complete the playoff lineup with 16 points.[/p][embed guid="8b3f3833-2db1-4b96-8f8a-20f58af69625" url="https://x.com/IPL/status/2058554790418997431" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]Punjab ended the league stage with 14 points and needed Rajasthan to lose the game to prolong their season. The result also ended [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/kolkata-knight-riders/nmRRRXaA/"]Kolkata Knight Riders[/a]' slim chances.[/b][/p][p]Defending champions Royal Challengers [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/royal-challengers-bengaluru/ObLbexsS/"]Bengaluru[/a], [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/gujarat-titans/WxbsgtO5/"]Gujarat Titans[/a] and Sunrisers [a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/team/sunrisers-hyderabad/ltywUfPr/"]Hyderabad[/a] had already booked their playoff spots.[/p][p]Bengaluru will face Gujarat in the first qualifier on Tuesday, and the winner will reach the final to be played in Ahmedabad on May 31st.[/p][p]Hyderabad and Rajasthan will clash in the eliminator on Wednesday, with the loser out of the tournament and the winner heading into the second qualifier.[/p][embed guid="1e502aa1-d85a-4204-a62a-24de86a58460" url="https://x.com/IPL/status/2058555203025322028" social-type="twitter" /][p]Put in to bat first, Rajasthan lost their openers, Yashasvi Jaiswal, for 27, and teenage prodigy Sooryavanshi, for four, to England spinner Will Jacks and Indian seamer Deepak Chahar.[/p][p]Wicketkeeper-batter Dhruv Jurel hit 38, and Sri Lanka's Dasun Shanaka struck 29 off 15 balls before Rajasthan were five down in the 13th over.[/p][p]Archer walked in two places above his usual number nine, and counter-attacked with three sixes and a four.[/p][p]He departed in the 18th over but inspired Ravindra Jadeja, who hit an 11-ball 19, and Nandre Burger, who struck 10 off three balls, to help Rajasthan plunder 73 runs from the last five overs.[/p][embed guid="d0c30130-4e52-4a90-b513-94c7afe4bcdc" url="https://x.com/rajasthanroyals/status/2058549924602724485" social-type="twitter" /][p][b]An upbeat Archer then rattled Mumbai with the ball as he sent back Rohit Sharma, caught behind for a fourth-ball duck in the first over.[/b][/p][p]He bowled Naman Dhir for six and fellow quick Burger dismissed Ryan Rickelton for 12 as five-time champions Mumbai soon slipped to 38-4.[/p][p]Suryakumar put on key stands, including a sixth-wicket partnership of 48 with skipper Hardik Pandya, who made 34, to keep Mumbai in the contest.[/p][p]Archer broke the stand with the wicket of Pandya and Suryakumar's departure in the 18th over cleared Rajasthan's path to the playoffs.[/p][p][b][a href="https://www.flashscore.ca/ipl/"]Follow the IPL with Flashscore here.[/a][/b][/p]