What would have been on Chennai Super Kings’ wish list before this final? 1) Win toss on a slow pitch. 2) Great start by the openers. 3) Remove Chris Gayle for a duck. PS: While we are it why not knock out AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli cheaply? They got all that. Chennai produced a near-perfect game and mauled Royal Challengers Bangalore to lift their second IPL trophy.

M Vijay has rarely converted his starts this IPL and Michael Hussey hasn’t sparkled in the previous few games. So what they do on the day of the big finale? They amass a sizzling 159-run partnership to launch Chennai to a massive total at the Chidambaram Stadium. R Ashwin then derailed the chase by packing off Gayle for a duck in the first over. Game over.

It was the ease with which the runs flowed and the calm manner in which they were accumulated by the Chennai openers that caught the eye. There were several big shots but nearly all of them were in conventional zones. There was just one bad shot in the first 14 overs. Just one. In the 10th over, Vijay had just played a nonchalant flick that sailed just clear of a lunging Luke Pomersbach on the deep-midwicket boundary. He then tried to slog the next ball across the line and edged it to the leg side. The reaction of the players reflected their awareness of the need to keep adrenalin in check: Vijay shadow practiced a straighter arc of the bat and Hussey rushed across to have a long chat.

For the duration of the partnership, which lasted 14.5 overs, they complemented each other with contrasting approaches. Hussey punctuated his bunts, chips and drives with the occasional big hit – the highlight was a monstrous heave off Syed Mohammad that crashed into the roof beyond wide long-on. Vijay went the other way. He punctuated his flamboyant on-the-up hits with quieter punches for singles and twos. They both ran between the wickets hard and fast and the scoring-rate never flagged. Vijay grew increasingly tired but it was Hussey who fell first, swatting a full toss from Mohammad to long-on. By then, they had laid a great platform.

It was Vijay who started the mayhem off the final delivery of the second over with a special shot. It was a short-of-length delivery with little room for maneuvering, or so it seemed, but Vijay wafted it on the up and through the line for a flamboyant six over long-on. Hussey pulled the next delivery, from Zaheer Khan, over the backward square-leg boundary to launch the assault. They repeated that double-dose of sixes again. Hussey swung the final delivery of the fifth over, bowled by Mohammad, over the midwicket boundary and Vijay lifted the next ball, from Chris Gayle, over long-on. Chennai reached 56 for 0 in six overs and kept going from strength to strength.

They started their bowling in the same way. Ashwin just needed three deliveries to remove the chief thorn in their path. The first two turned sharply away from Gayle before the third swerved in from round the stumps and skidded on to collect the edge from an attempted cut. de Villiers reeled off a few big shots but was trapped by Shadab Jakati and Suresh Raina had Kohli lbw to sew up the game for Chennai.

In contrast Bangalore slipped on the little things that matter on this stage. In the Powerplay, there were three instances of fielders succumbing to adrenalin rushes and indulging in needless throws; one, from Saurabh Tiwary, even went to the boundary. Pomersbach could have done a better job in seizing that chance from Vijay in the 10th over, and S Aravind messed up an opportunity to run out Hussey in the 12th over. Vijay, the non-striker, had called Hussey for a risky single and Aravind, the bowler who picked up the ball at short mid-on, flung it wide at the non-striker’s end. There was another instance in the 11th over when the bowler, Mohammad, flung himself full stretch to his right but couldn’t hang on to a difficult chance offered by Vijay. It was that kind of day. Things just didn’t go right for Bangalore and everything went according to script for Chennai.

Sriram Veera is a staff writer at ESPNcricinfo

Royal Challengers set up a final clash with Chennai Super Kings after beating Mumbai Indians by 43 runs in the second qualifying final of IPL 4 at MA Chidambaram stadium in Chennai on Friday.

Chasing a mammoth victory target of 186 runs, Mumbai managed 143/8 in their 20 overs.

Daniel Vettori scalped Rohit Sharma, Ambati Rayudu and Kieron Pollard in his successive overs.

Vettori first had Rohit caught by Luke Pomersbach at sweeper cover and one ball later trapped Rayudu plumb in front of the wicket for a first ball duck.

Abhimanyu Mithun took a superb one-handed catch at long-on to dismiss Pollard in Vettori’s next over.

Zaheer Khan then clean bowled James Franklin to reduce Mumbai to 99/7 and ending all their hopes of a fightback.

Left-arm spinner Jamaluddin Syed Mohammad had captain Sachin Tendulkar stumped by AB de Villiers to reduce Mumbai to 68/3 in 8 overs.

Tendulkar charged down the pitch but was beaten by the delivery that turned sharply and the Master was in no position to negotiate the sharp turn and AB de Villiers removed the bails in a flash.

Tendulkar hit 7 fours in his 24-ball 40 before falling to Syed.

Sreenath Aravind dismissed Aiden Blizzard and Harbhajan Singh in his successive overs as Mumbai got off to a poor start.

Aravind first had Blizzard caught by Mayank Agarwal at long-on and in his next over had Harbhajan caught by Luke Pomersbach at deep mid-wicket.

Blizzard hit 2 fours in his 11-ball 10 while pinch-hitter Harbhajan hit a six and a four in his 7-ball 13.

Earlier, Chris Gayle’s 47-ball 89 and Mayank Agarwal’s 31-ball 41 powered Bangalore to 185/4.

AB de Villiers hit a six in his unbeaten 15-ball 21.

Gayle smashed 89 runs off 47 balls before Munaf Patel had him caught by James Franklin at long-on.

Gayle’s blitzkrieg knock was studded with 5 sixes and 9 fours ad he was lloking good for more before Munaf struck in the 15th over.

Bangalore lost their third wicket in the next over when Virat Kohli edged a Abu Nechim delivery onto his stumps.

Munaf struck again in his next over when Lasith Malinga took a superb diving catch at short third-man to dismiss Luke Pomersbach.

Gayle reached his half-century off 27 balls and was ably aided by his opening partner Mayank Agarwal as the two brought up Bangalore’s 100 in the ninth over after brining up the 50 in the fourth over.

All plans to contain the Bangalore openers failed as Mumbai captain Sachin Tendulkar deployed as many as six bowlers in the first nine overs.

Bangalore lost their first wicket when Kieron Pollard had Agarwal caught by Rohit Sharma at long-on.

Agarwal hit 2 sixes and 2 fours in his 31-ball 41 and put up a 113-run opening stand with Gayle.

The carnage started after Tendulkar won the toss and chose to bowl.

Mumbai brought in Abu Nechim and Rajagopal Satish in favour of T Suman and Dhawal Kulkarni.

Bangalore replaced Mohammad Kaif with Jamaluddin Syed Mohammad.

Teams:

Mumbai Indians: Sachin Tendulkar (Capt.), Aiden Blizzard, Ambati Rayudu, Rohit Sharma, Kieron Pollard, James Franklin, Rajagopal Satish, Harbhajan Singh, Munaf Patel, Lasith Malinga, Abu Nechim.

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Daniel Vettori (Capt.), Chris Gayle, Mayank Agarwal, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Saurabh Tiwary, Luke Pomersbach, Sreenath Aravind, Abhimanyu Mithun, Zaheer Khan, Jamaluddin Syed Mohammad.

Source: Times of India

Chennai Super Kings beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by six wickets to reach IPL 4 final as Suresh Raina hit an unbeaten 50-ball 73 at Wankhede stadium in Mumbai on Tuesday.

Chennai chased down the 176-run target in 19.4 overs as Raina and Albie Morkel put up a 46-run stand off 18 balls.

Raina’s unbeaten knock was studded with 6 sixes and 4 fours and Morkel hit 3 sixes and a four in his 10-ball 28.

Zaheer Khan had Chennai captain MS Dhoni caught by Abhimanyu Mithun at long-on soon after Suresh Raina hit a 41-ball fifty.

Dhoni hit a six and 3 fours in his 19-ball 29 before falling to Zaheer.

Raina and Dhoni added 61 runs for the fourth wicket after Abhimanyu Mithun had Subramaniam Badrinath caught by Sreenath Aravind at sweeper cover.

Badrinath hit 5 fours in his 32-ball 34 and added 63 runs for the third wicket with Raina before falling to Mithun.

Chennai’s run chase got off to a bad start as Zaheer Khan and Sreenath Aravind dismissed their openers in the first two overs.

Zaheer struck first when he trapped Michael Hussey plumb in front of the wicket on the fourth ball of the Chennai innings for a duck.

Aravind then dismissed Murali Vijay leg before wicket in the second over to place Chennai to 7/2.

Earlier, Virat Kohli hit an unbeaten 44-ball 70 to power Bangalore to 175/4 against Chennai.

Kohli’s unbeaten knock was studded with 3 sixes and 5 fours and he put a 48-run stand with Luke Pomersbach to lead Bangalore’s recovery.

Pomersbach hit 2 sixes and 2 fours in his 18-ball 29 before he was clean bowled by a slower delivery from Doug Bollinger.

Chennai had seized the advantage when Shadab Jakati had AB de Villiers caught by Murali Vijay at long-on.

de Villiers hit a six in his 10-ball 11 before losing his wicket.

Dwayne Bravo had Mayank Agarwal caught by Doug Bollinger at long-on to place Bangalore at 65/2 in 9 overs.

Mayank hit 5 fours in his 33-ball 34 before falling to Bravo.

Ravichandran Ashwin gave Chennai an early breakthrough when he trapped the dangerous Chris Gayle plumb in front of the wicket.

Ashwin struck immediately after getting hit for a six.

Gayle hit a six in his 9-ball 8 before falling to Ashwin.

The breakthrough came after Chennai captain MS Dhoni won the toss and chose to bowl.

Both Chennai and Bangalore have the same playing eleven.

Teams:

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Daniel Vettori (Capt.), Mayank Agarwal, Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers, Mohammad Kaif, Saurabh Tiwary, Luke Pomersbach, Sreenath Aravind, Abhimanyu Mithun, Zaheer Khan.

Chennai Super Kings: Mahendra Singh Dhoni (Capt.), Michael Hussey, Murali Vijay, Suresh Raina, Albie Morkel, Subramaniam Badrinath, Dwayne Bravo, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Doug Bollinger, Shadab Jakati.

Source: Times of India

Chris Gayle smashed an unbeaten 75 as Royal Challengers Bangalore topped the points table with an eight-wicket win over Chennai Super Kings in the Indian Premier League on Sunday.

The West Indies opener hit six sixes in his 50-ball knock as Bangalore surpassed Chennai’s total of 128-8 with two overs to spare in their last league match of the Twenty20 tournament.

Gayle, who added 80 for the second wicket with Virat Kohli (31), finished the match when he hit spinner Suresh Raina for 11 runs off the last three balls of the 18th over.

Bangalore (19 points), Chennai (18), Kolkata (16) and Mumbai (16) have already qualified for the play-offs. They are followed by Punjab (14), Rajasthan (13), Deccan (12), Kochi (12), Pune (nine) and Delhi (nine).

Chennai skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni hit six sixes in his explosive 40-ball 70 not out but received little support from the other end, the highest stand of the innings being 42 for the fifth wicket.

Chennai made a poor start after being put in to bat as they lost four wickets for 22 runs in the opening six overs, with left-arm paceman Zaheer Khan dismissing Australian Michael Hussey and Raina in successive overs.

Hussey could make just four runs before inside-edging a Zaheer devliery on to the stumps while Raina was caught by Kohli at point.

New Zealand left-arm spinner Daniel Vettori put more pressure on Chennai when he removed Subramaniam Badrinath and West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo to eventually finish with 2-15 off four overs.

Source: Yahoo Cricket

Brett Lee sledged, Gautam Gambhir sighed in agony, and the crowd lapped it up in delight as Chris Gayle’s brutal cameo obliterated the below-par target set by Kolkata Knight Riders in a rain-hit game in Bangalore. Though the chase went into the final over, and Royal Challengers Bangalore lost a few quick wickets in the end, Gayle’s 12-ball 38 had effectively killed the contest in just 2.4 overs of the chase. With the win, Bangalore made it seven victories on the trot and qualified for the playoffs.

Though Gayle dealt them the final blow, it was Kolkata’s batting, which bordered on over-aggression, and the rain, that reduced the game to a 13-over contest, that really cost them the game. Kolkata were 69 for 3 in 11 overs when rain left them with only two more overs to bat, and they reached 89 for 4. Bangalore were set a Duckworth/Lewis adjusted target of 102 and Gayle’s blitz ensured they could soak up the loss of quick wickets and reach the target.

The first over of the chase perfectly caught Gayle’s fury and Kolkata’s disappointment: Edge. Blast. Sledge. Edge. Crash. Gayle edged the first delivery to the third man boundary, crashed the second over cover, dug out a screaming yorker next – Lee sledged at this point, collected a four with a top-edged pull off the fifth ball and walloped the fifth to the cover-point boundary.

Kolkata’s troubles didn’t end with that 16-run over, for Jaidev Unadkat was looted for 23 in the next over. Luke Pomersbach, who replaced Tillakaratne Dilshan, started with a square-cut boundary before Gayle took over. He top-edged a six over third man before launching the next delivery on to the second tier of the stand beyond long-on. Although Gayle fell, top-edging a Lee delivery to Kallis, he had put Bangalore on course. They lost a few wickets in the end but there was never any danger of them losing their way.

It was with their batting that Kolkata lost the game. Sometimes, you can get over-aggressive. Sometimes, you need to shift to a Plan B but Kolkata seemed too eager to dominate. In their attempt to attack, they perhaps crossed the line. Even Jacques Kallis was nearly slogging and heaving at deliveries. Gautam Gambhir went too hard at deliveries and Eoin Morgan tried to cut nearly every delivery he faced. The result? They were reduced to 30 for 3 in the sixth over. They recovered to reach 69 for 3 in 11 overs but then rain soaked the playing arena. A long wait ensued and the game was restricted to 13 overs upon resumption.

Bangalore did everything right; they attacked relentlessly and suffocated the batsmen. They hurled down the bouncers, slipped in the occasional yorker, they got the ball to swing and seam a bit and always attacked. Eoin Morgan couldn’t get Zaheer Khan away and fell, charging out and flicking straight to midwicket. Jacques Kallis was intent on playing the big shots and he fell, edging an attempted heave off Charl Langeveldt. Bangalore’s change-up bowlers, Abimanyu Mithun and S Aravind, too kept it really tight and Bangalore’s sharp fielding did its bit in keeping Kolkata in check. When Gambhir tried to break free with a cut, AB de Villiers lunged to his left at backward point to take a sharp chance. It was left to Yusuf Pathan to give Kolkata a decent total but it didn’t prove enough.

Source: NDTV Cricket

Chris Gayle scripted yet another victory of Royal Challengers Bangalore with an unbeaten 70-run knock as they spanked Rajasthan Royals by nine wickets to jump to the second spot in the Indian Premier League on Wednesday.

Chasing a modest 147, Bangalore coasted to win with three overs to spare and spoiled Shane Warne’s last game at home as the Australian will retire from the league after this season.

Tillakaratne Dilshan though made his last outing at the IPL-IV memorable as he scored a quick-fire 38 to contribute in his side’s easy win while stand-in skipper Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 39.

Rajasthan frittered away a good start to settle for a modest 146 for six after being invited to bat with opener Rahul Dravid (37) top-scoring for them.

Bangalore now have 15 points from 11 matches while Rajasthan’s play-off hopes have dipped as they will have to win remaining two matches and hope that some other results go in their favour. They remain at fifth spot despite defeat.

Kohli led Bangalore in the absence of injured Daniel Vettori and the 22-year-old Indian became the youngest captain to lead an IPL side.

It was Bangalore’s sixth win in a row while Rajasthan suffered their third straight defeat.

Gayle was dropped by Warne when he was in 13 but did not give them any chance after that as he smashed 10 boundaries, including four sixes in his 44-ball stay at the crease.

When the Bangalore chase started, all the eyes were on Gayle because of his scorching form but it was Dilshan who stole the thunder initially by hitting a flurry of boundaries.

He did not spare any bowler as he hit Shane Watson in the opening over for two fours and extracted boundaries at will when Johan Botha and Pankaj Singh were operating.

Warne committed a blunder by dropping Gayle off Botha when the Caribbean was on 13, making his own job more tough.

Dilshan on the other end continued to punish the bowlers as he creamed Siddharth Trivedi for two more fours as Bangalore raced to fifty in just five overs.

Gayle, who was playing second fiddle by then, lofted Botha for a six to make his presence felt but Dilshan fell to Warne while attempting a six in the mid-wicket region.

Gayle was not his usual aggressive self but was still scoring at a fast pace, running hard between the wickets along with Kohli and finding a boundary here and there.

But soon the scene changed as the left-hander from the West Indies hit Botha for a six to raise his fifty and then made Warne repent for his dropped catch by launching him for a six over long-off and followed it with a four.

Kohli too was playing confidently from the other end and ended the match with a four and six off Pankaj Singh. His 39 came off 34 balls.

Earlier, Rajasthan were off to a decent start with Dravid and Watson sharing 73 runs but Bangalore dominated the proceedings after left-arm paceman Sreenath Aravind consumed both the openers in the 10th over.

Scoring rate suffered after the double blow as the middle-order failed to carry on the good work and the biggest disappointment was Ross Taylor (13), who yet again failed to make any significant contribution.

Aravind (3/34) was the most successful bowler with three wickets, though he was not successful initially.

At the start, Watson found two boundaries off Aravind and Dravid hit his trademark elegant drives off Zaheer Khan and Charl Langeveldt as Bangalore reached 43 for no loss after six overs after being invited to bat.

Conditions were good batting as the ball was nicely coming on to the bat and both the openers started to play more freely with Watson launching Aravind for a huge six.

The openers were targetting Aravind a lot and in the process both of them fell in the left-arm paceman’s third over, 10th of the innings.

First to go was Watson, whose powerful hit landed straight in the hands of AB de Villers at long-off and two balls later, Dravid hit one back to the bowler.

Two new batsmen — Botha and Rahane — were at the crease and it affected the run-rate. Kohli himself bowled three overs and was pretty successful, conceding just 17 runs.

As if dipping run-rate was not enough Rahane was run out just after hitting Abrar Kazi for a six because of a terrible mix-up with Botha.

Botha reverse-swept Kazi and set out for a single which was not there and Rahane sacrificed his wicket.

Taylor took some time to settle and meanwhile Botha too perished before doing anything significant as Aravind returned to claim his third victim, this time caught behind.

Taylor and Ashok Menaria (8) departed while attempting big shots and eventually, the hosts failed to put up a challenging target.

Source: NDTV Cricket

Chasing a modest target of 126 runs against Kochi, Bangalore achieved a 9-wicket win with 41 balls to spare with the help of quickfire knocks from Chris Gayle and Tillakaratne Dilshan.

Earlier, Royal Challengers Bangalore restricted Kochi Tusker Kerala to a modest 125 for nine to take command in the Indian Premier League match at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium here today.

Expecting the wicket to assist spin, Kochi skipper Mahela Jayawardene opted to bat upon winning the toss but his batsmen committed hara kiri after Michael Klinger (24) and Brendon McCullum (22) had provided them a reasonably good start of 43 runs.

Having started on a positive note with 41 for no loss in five overs, the Tuskers suddenly plummeted to 73 for four in 10.1 overs to hand the advantage to the Bangalore outfit, who are seeking to score their fifth successive win.

McCullum, who threatened to cut lose, was the first to depart, chipping Daniel Vettori to substitute Arun Karthik, fielding in place of an injured Cheteswar Pujara.

Klinger joined McCullum back in the hut, playing all over a Chris Gayle delivery to have his stumps rattled. Much was expected of Jayawardene, but the captain was snaffled behind the wicket by AB de Villiers off the canny Vettori.

Parthiv Patel made things worse by having himself run out by an acrobatic de Villiers.

Last match hero Brad Hodge and Ravindra Jadeja, however, managed to steady the rocking ship briefly with a 16-run partnership. But RCB, clad in pastel green to support environment issues, had the match under their command by the 15th over, leaving the Tuskers struggling for oxygen at 95 for five.

The Tuskers just could not get off the rack and eventually settled for a modest total in their allotted 20 overs.

Source: NDTV Cricket

Once every two years, Bangalore hosts Aero India, the country’s biggest air show held on the outskirts of the city. On Friday night, Chris Gayle took it upon himself to deliver a similar spectacle to the home crowd, who went ballistic watching a flogging of a lifetime inflicted on the Kings XI Punjab bowlers. As the deflated attack desperately sought mercy, Gayle celebrated his domination with a triumphant smile, propelling his team to a thumping fourth straight win with an unforgettable century that made a backyard out of the Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Adam Gilchrist, cheery as ever, decided to field on a pitch that promised some assistance to his four-pronged pace attack. While he met Gayle’s onslaught with a look of awe and admiration, his bowlers were what they looked – stunned into submission. The early movement and a spate of hits and misses in the first couple of overs were the few signs of encouragement in an otherwise dispiriting innings.

Gayle targeted the straight boundary, rarely attempted any cross-bat heaves or slogs, and relied on brute strength, partly a consequence of what is known to be a fitness regime that’s ever the aspiration of the healthier than normal. Ryan Harris was the first recipient of Gayle’s treatment, as he clobbered two consecutive sixes over long-on in the fourth over.

The Punjab bowlers erred in length, often doling out length deliveries, but most would have been unsettled by Gayle’s ruthless approach. His initial movement was to make room and then, depending on the line, have a free swing in the same direction. Praveen Kumar’s skills with variations in pace were conspicuous by their absence as he dished out a series of length deliveries that Gayle was only happy to dig into. After launching him for two straight sixes, he cashed in on some misdirection to pick up two fours in an over that yielded 22.

Gilchrist had to turn to spin and he found the expensive Piyush Chawla, whose figures this season took further beating with two monstrous sixes over midwicket off long hops. Virat Kohli, in a fortunate yet largely mature innings, was only too happy to cede floor to his partner, who then directed his attention to Love Ablish, whose pain of rejection was felt in three consecutive boundaries, one of which was a streaky edge past the diving Gilchrist.

A half-tracker from Abhishek Nayar disappeared over square leg, and the returning Ryan McLaren, who had delivered Punjab their first breakthrough with the wicket of Tillakaratne Dilshan, was to bear first sight of Gayle’s celebration upon reaching his century. He was hammered over long-on, followed by a disdainful punch through mid-off that brought up the landmark, Gayle’s second this season.

Relief came when Gayle holed out to deep midwicket off Chawla and Kohli was bowled two balls later, but AB de Villiers kept the innings on track with a typically aggressive cameo to leave Punjab with a daunting task.

The signs were there when Gilchrist was brilliantly run out first ball by Asad Pathan while attempting a quick single, and as is the case in games decided by individuals, it wasn’t long before Gayle stepped in. He cast aside his usually calm, sober self and reveled, like a mischevious child, at every Punjab misfortune wrought by his offspin. Paul Valthaty spooned one to square leg, Dinesh Karthik was trapped in front and Chawla yorked. As Punjab limped towards a fourth defeat in a row, Gayle stood out amid the celebrations, fluttering curls, locomotive moves and all.

Siddhartha Talya is a sub editor at ESPNcricinfo

Pune Warriors went up against Murphy’s Law at the Chinnaswamy Stadium and came a distant second-best, as they hurtled to their fifth successive defeat. Everything they tried backfired spectacularly: they included Kamran Khan to add an extra dimension to their attack, and Tim Paine for solidity at the top. As it transpired, Kamran bled 47 in three overs, allowing Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli to unleash a rain of sixes that lifted Royal Challengers Bangalore to 181. In the reply, Paine ended up providing more solidity than was bargained for, sleep-walking to 8 off 17 balls as the chase lost steam early.

Paine’s problems, and Manish Pandey’s after him, meant Jesse Ryder struggled to roll at his usual pace. Pune dawdled listlessly to 63 for 1 by the 10th over, with their two best batsmen still waiting for a hit. By the time Yuvraj Singh took guard, Pune needed 103 off 51 balls. Had he left it for too late?

Pandey continued to struggle, and Yuvraj took it upon himself to pull off the unthinkable. He began to target left-arm spinners Daniel Vettori and Syed Mohammad, and carted them for three sixes and a four with the spin to reduce the equation to 55 needed off the last four overs. Zaheer Khan, who had struggled in his first spell, came on and produced exemplary lengths to force Yuvraj into a mis-hit. Vettori and Gayle followed that up with two unhittable overs to close the game out.

Earlier, Bangalore played the typical IPL innings: keep out the good bowlers, and go after the weakest link. They did not have to wait long to capitalise on Pune’s hit-me bowler. Kamran ran in for the third over, slipped in his delivery stride and lay sprawled on the turf. He managed to recover from that fall, but was soon floored once again by a murderous assault from Gayle. Pune kept slipping from the moment Kamran slipped.

Kamran’s lengths were straight out of Chris Gayle heaven. He began with a short-of-a-length delivery. Gayle pranced out of his crease and carved through the covers. Kamran went fuller with the third ball, and Gayle launched him over long-off. Kamran promptly dropped short, and Gayle swung him almost onto the roof of the stadium. The next one was too full, and Gayle scythed through the off side. Twenty off the over, and the home crowd was dancing in joy.

Two more quiet overs followed before the carnage resumed against Kamran. The length did not seem to matter anymore, as Gayle just looked to get behind the line and lash at everything. Two length balls were mowed through the leg side, before a very full delivery outside off was knifed over the point boundary, as Bangalore soared to 57 off the Powerplay.

Rahul Sharma pulled things back by zipping a quicker one past Tillakaratne Dilshan’s pull, before winning a dodgy lbw appeal against Gayle when he was on 49. Only one boundary came in the next five overs – a six off who else but Kamran – as Kohli and AB de Villiers coiled up for the closing assault. Rahul’s first three overs went for 13 as he bowled clever lengths and kept varying the pace. His last over, however, was the start of Bangalore’s final fling.

Kohli, who had moved to 27 off 26 balls by the end of the 14th over, went berserk thereafter, looting 40 off the last 16 balls he faced. The shot that stood out in his closing blitz was the swat-flick off the front foot through wide mid-on, with the bottom hand imparting unreal power. He redirected Rahul through the leg side twice in the 15th over before driving Ryder on either side of the wicket for elegant fours.

Jerome Taylor was too full in the 18th over, and Kohli pummelled him for another six over square leg before mis-hitting him for six more over third man. In the meantime, de Villiers thumped Ryder straight for the biggest six of the day. As if that violence wasn’t enough, Saurabh Tiwary slugged Taylor into the midwicket stands as Bangalore’s total soared out of control. That, despite Rahul and Alfonso Thomas bowling out of their skins to pick up 4 for 50 off their eight overs. It’s fair to say it just wasn’t Pune’s night.

Nitin Sundar is a sub-editor at ESPNcricinfo

Skipper Daniel Vettori and Syed Mohammad held their nerves to help Royal Challengers Bangalore overcome Delhi Daredevils by three wickets in their Indian Premier League (IPL) match at Feroz Shah Kotla.

Virat Kohli scored a fine 56 off 38 balls and shared 82 runs for the second wicket with Chris Gayle (26) to set the platform for the chase. Syed (13 not out) smashed two fours in the 18th over and Vettori (18 not out) brought off the winning runs with three balls to spare as Bangalore achieved their third victory in seven matches.

It looked all too easy when Kohli and Gayle were batting in the middle – scoring almost 12 runs per over but Delhi clawed back with the wicket of left-hander Gayle, when he edged one for a simple catch to Venugopal Rao in the deep mid-wicket region off James Hopes.

Bangalore’s middle order tried to consolidate and they lost their way. The turning point was the introduction into the attack by Sehwag of James Hopes, who claimed dangerous Gayle in his first over.

The tourists, chasing 161 for victory, lost AB de Villiers, Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara in quick succession to put some unnecessary pressure on themselves.

Earlier, all-rounder James Hopes, being sent up the order, played a crucial knock of 54 runs and shared an important 47-run partnership with Venugopal Rao to help his team to a challenging total. Hopes was fortunate to have escaped on 43 after being caught off a no-ball from Abhimanyu Mithun in the 15th over.

The home team was rocked by early dismissals of openers David Warner and skipper Virender Sehwag with just 43 runs on board. Sehwag smashed three fours in his 25 runs before being run-out handing Bangalore early advantage.

Zaheer Khan gave Bangalore an early breakthrough, when he bowled in-form Warner for 7 runs but Hopes and Rao brought Delhi back on track for a decent total. The Australian all-rounder struck a patient half-century off 43 balls and Rao continued his fine form with the bat, scoring a valuable 24 runs with two fours and a six.

Naman Ojha (16) and Irfan Pathan (13) added some priceless runs in the end to delight the sizeable home crowd. Bangalore bowling stood up well to the task today with Mithun finishing with two for 37 from his four overs.

Delhi made three changes with Matthew Wade, Umesh Yadav and Ashok Dinda coming in for Aaron Finch, Varun Aaron and Ajit Agarkar. Bangalore left out Asad Pathan to accommodate Abhimanyu Mithun.

Bikash Singh, Yahoo! Cricket