Jofra Archer delivers a fiery opening spell, dismantles Punjab’s top order with lethal precision

Jofra Archer gave the Rajasthan Royals a dream start with an incredible opening over against Punjab Kings and dismissed the top batting order with his fiery spell. Rajasthan Royals are  facing the Punjab Kings in the match 18 of the ongoing IPL 2025 and match is scheduled at the home ground of Punjab Kings in the Mullanpur Stadium, Chandigarh.

Royals put on an incredible show, with their innings today, first Batters brought fiery spells with their top batsmen returning to form and then the bowling unit came and made an immediate impact. Winning the toss, Punjab invited Royals to bat first and coming on crease they posted a total of 205 for PBKS to chase.

Watch: Jofra Archer Wreaks Havoc with his lethal spell

Bowling the first over for his team, Jofra Archer provided his team a much-needed start and dismantled Punjab’s top two batsmen in just the first over of his spell. He came on the crease and bowled out Priyansh Arya with a perfect delivery that hit the stumps directly on the very first ball of his first over. Following Arya’s dismissal, Shreyas Iyer hit Archer for two boundaries, but Jofra didn’t lose his calm and made a comeback with the next wicket on the last delivery of the same over.

Archer on 🎯

Jofra Archer’s double timber-strike gives #RR a dream start 💥

Updates ▶ https://t.co/kjdEJydDWe#TATAIPL | #PBKSvRR | @JofraArcher | @rajasthanroyals pic.twitter.com/CfLjvlCC6L

— IndianPremierLeague (@IPL) April 5, 2025

Shreyas who looked confident with initial boundaries fell in the trap and lost his wicket to Archer. Just a couple balls later after the first wicket of PBKS, Iyer tried to hit a fast full delivery over the field but missed it completely. The ball hit the stumps and sent Iyer back to the pavilion. 

Archer, after two dismissals in just six balls, has shaken Punjab’s batting lineup and given Rajasthan the perfect start. His form delivered a message that his fast bowling can still dominate.

RR vs PBKS Playing XI

Rajasthan Royals (Playing XI): Yashasvi Jaiswal, Sanju Samson(c), Nitish Rana, Riyan Parag, Dhruv Jurel(w), Shimron Hetmyer, Wanindu Hasaranga, Jofra Archer, Maheesh Theekshana, Yudhvir Singh Charak, Sandeep Sharma

Punjab Kings (Playing XI): Prabhsimran Singh(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Marcus Stoinis, Nehal Wadhera, Glenn Maxwell, Shashank Singh, Suryansh Shedge, Marco Jansen, Arshdeep Singh, Lockie Ferguson, Yuzvendra Chahal