Rajasthan Royals (RR) bowler Tushar Deshpande has revealed that he was initially set to bowl the 19th over, instead of the last, during their game against the Gujarat Titans (GT) on Saturday, April 4. The 30-year-old was the star of a nervy ending to the game, defending 11 runs off the final over to take his side to an unlikely win.
Deshpande stated that when Jofra Archer was chosen to bowl the 19th over instead of him, it hurt him a little. The right-arm seamer channeled that aggression to bowl the final over to good effect against GT.
“To be honest, it just happened in the heat of the moment, where the match stood, and the way we won it from the jaws of defeat. I was not supposed to bowl the last over; I was going to bowl the 19th over, and that hurt me a little. Then Riyan (Parag) told me to bowl the 20th over, so it was that aggression to bowl that ultimate over, and we won the game.”
Deshpande later stated that he was completely unaware that his aggressive celebration after winning RR the game was exactly the same as Rashid Khan’s when the Afghanistan star took GT to win over RR in Jaipur on the final ball back in 2024.
Deshpande’s celebration can be seen below:
𝐀𝐁𝐒𝐎𝐋𝐔𝐓𝐄 𝐂𝐈𝐍𝐄𝐌𝐀!🙌🏻🤯#TATAIPL2026 #GTvsRR #TATAIPL pic.twitter.com/flMTU9jPtU
— Star Sports Kannada (@StarSportsKan) April 4, 2026
After posting 210 while batting first in Ahmedabad, RR looked like the second-best team all along when GT were cruising to the target. Ravi Bishnoi then took four wickets to bring the 2008 champions back into the game.
Deshpande, however, was the pick of the bowlers, conceding just 24 runs from three overs whilst taking the crucial wicket of Rashid Khan in the final over. With GT needing 11 runs off the final six balls, the seamer gave away just four runs, including bowling three dot balls in the end to hand RR their second win of the 2026 season.
Parag lauded for trusting Tushar Deshpande with final over
Deshpande is currently in his second season representing the Jaipur-based franchise, after moving from the Chennai Super Kings. He took nine wickets from 10 matches last season.
