Man, this whole Rajasthan Royals versus Punjab Kings stats deep dive started because my buddy kept arguing last weekend that Punjab always dominates. Got me thinking – why not actually check the numbers instead of just shouting over beers? So I pulled up the laptop Sunday morning, still in pajamas honestly.
The messy data hunt begins
First things first – opened like ten different cricket stats sites because nobody had clean head-to-head records. Tabs everywhere, phone buzzing with WhatsApp cricket group nonsense while I’m cross-checking numbers. Wasted a solid hour trying to confirm if that 2014 match was washed out or just not recorded properly. Almost threw my coffee mug when I saw three sites listing different winners for the same freaking game!
Patterns jumping out
Once I finally untangled the mess? Wild stuff emerged:
- RR ain’t choking like people say – They actually won 6 of the last 10 against Punjab since 2020. My “Punjab always wins” friend owes me a beer now.
- Found the real turning point year – Punjab demolished Rajasthan 5 times straight back in 2018. No wonder my buddy remembered it that way!
- Scratching my head over absolute domination games – That one year where whoever batted first just auto-lost? Seriously weird.
Spreadsheet hell (and glory)
Got obsessed with the “smaller” stats after that. Made a giant Google Sheet that probably crashed twice:
- Turns out Buttler smashes Arshdeep like a piñata – 85+ strike rate every single time he’s faced him.
- But somehow Curran got smashed worse – economy rate pushing 10 when he bowls to Samson. Would’ve never guessed.
Finished the whole thing around midnight, hungry but weirdly satisfied. Truth is, without actually putting in the hours to untangle IPL’s messy stats? You’re just recycling barstool opinions. Next time someone yaps about “Punjab owning Rajasthan,” I’m sending them screenshots. Case closed.
