In the first math of the day, Royal Challengers Bangalore proved once again they were masters of the chase at home, especially when Chris Gayle fires. But as much as Gayle’s 50-ball 85 and nine massive sixes sent the mercury soaring in the hosts eight-wicket win over defending champs Kolkata Knight RIders, heat as intense was produced by the rival captains. Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir, bound to Delhi by birth and upstanding representatives of its nature, were headed for a collision before another Delhiite, Rajat Bhatia pulled the younger man away.
No matter the unsavory clash that followed Kohli’s dismissal for 37, runs that got him once again the orange cap, Gayle was unstoppable. He provided the kind of power that KKR sorely lacked when they were sent in. Gambhir was unable to hit top gear in his half-century and cameos from Yusuf Pathan and Manoj Tiwary failed to develop into anything meaningful. RP Singh and Moises Henriques led Bangalore’s pack of seamers as wickets fell in a heap towards the end. But it was Gayle who eventually proved to be a gamechanger with his huge hits ushering in a premature end with 15 balls to spare.
Where as in second game, Pune Warriors ended an eleven-match losing streak across two IPL seasons by registering a seven-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals at their home ground on Saturday. After being humiliated by Kings XI Punjab in their last match, Pune were better prepared this time with Yuvraj Singh back in the side. The star player made his presence felt as Pune restricted Royals to a modest 145 and then smashed the winning runs with a towering six that crowned his 28-run cameo and ended the chase with eight balls to spare.
When Royals batted, Rahul Dravid (54) and Ajinkya Rahane (30) looked at one stage to get them to a bigger total, but two stunning catches – by Angelo Mathews and Ross Taylor – accounted for both. Leg-spinner Rahul Sharma conceded just 16 in his quota of four and was an effective option for skipper Mathews.
Pune exploded into the chase. Openers Robin Uthappa (32,16b, 2x6) and Aaaron Finch (64, 53b, 3x6) rustled up 58 in under five overs, making a hash of the required rate. It was regulation from then on and Finch’s relentless hitting saw Pune home safely despite his dismissal later. Dravid took a magnificent reflex catch at short mid-wicket to get rid of Uthappa, but the momentum that the openers had provided was enough.
