Bangalore: Royal Challengers Bangalore beats Chennai Super Kings by 24 runs on Saturday in a rain-shortened crucial IPL league match here to remain in contention for a berth in play-offs.
Chasing 107 to win in 8 overs, CSK could only manage 82 for the loss of six wickets. Dhoni, Vijay got the starts but failed to see CSK across the finishing line. For RCB, skipper Virat Kohli scored an unbeaten 56 off only 29 balls with six fours and four sixes to propel the team’s score to 106/2 in eight overs.
Now, RCB entry into play-offs will depend on the outcome of the match between Sunrisers Hyderabad and Kolkata Knight Riders on Sunday. If Sunrisers wins the match against KKR, it will automatically qualify for play-offs or even if it loses, the net run rate will decide whether Sunrisers or RCB makes it to the play-offs.
Earlier, rain delayed the start of the match by three hours. The match was reduced to eight over per side. Chennai Super Kings won the toss and chose to chase. Spectacular hitting by Virat Kohli helped RCB post an imposing total of 106 for two in only eight overs.
Skipper Kohli added 67 runs with Chris Gayle (28, 13 balls, 4×6) for the opening stand. Promoting himself, Kohli got a boundary with a cover drive off the second delivery bowled by Ravichandran Ashwin, who was otherwise economical.
Gayle got into the act with a slashed six over point off Chris Morris as 11 runs came off the second over. The RCB skipper showed the way as he launched into Ashwin in the third over. Two short deliveries were carted in the region between mid-wicket and deep mid-wicket and then danced down the track to loft a carrom ball from Ashwin into the long-off stands.
Kohli’s big hits were a treat to watch as smashed Morris straight past for a boundary before finishing off the over with a six over long-off. Such was Kohli’s aggressive mindset that someone like Gayle was happy taking the single and giving the strike back to his captain.
The big-bodied Jamaican however took over in the fifth over bowled by fellow West Indian Jason Holder as he hit three successive sixes to take the score from 48 to 66. All three were hit in the deep mid-wicket region.
Finally, it was Bravo who got rid of Gayle as the opener hit one straight to Mike Hussey at cover as the first wicket fell on 67. The dangerous AB de Villiers (5) got a boundary but was holed out in the deep off Mohit Sharma’s slower delivery.
