Fine batting by Gautam Gambhir (64) followed with deadly bowling by Lakshmipathy Balaji (4/18) powered Kolkata Knight Riders to a dazzling 42-run win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in the 10th match of IPL 5 at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Tuesday.
Chasing 166, Royal Challengers Bangalore had a disastrous start to their run chase as they lost Cheteshwar Pujara, Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers inside 25 runs against Kolkata Knight Riders.
Royal Challengers Bangalore, who were tottering at 61/6 after the end of 12 overs, could all manage 123 for 9 in their stipulated 20 overs.
Royal Challengers Bangalore lost half of their side inside 33 runs against Kolkata Knight Riders
Seamer Lakshmipathy Balaji, who finished with the figures of 4/18, scalped RCB skipper Daniel Vettori to pick up his fourth wicket. Mayank Agarwal became Balaji's, who was the hero of the day, third victim.
Australian seamer Brett Lee, who didn't get a single wicket, was too economical as he gave away only 21 runs in his quota of four overs.
South African all-rounder Jacques Kallis' double strike rattled Bangalore's run chase early on as he first got rid of Pujara (6) and then sent dangerman Gayle (2) back to the pavillion.
Balaji also struck twice to dismantle RCB's top order. Balaji first dismissed Virat Kohli (6) and then cleaned up AB de Villiers for 10.
Earlier, Gautam Gambhir (64) and Manvinder Bisla (46) guided Kolkata Knight Riders to a fighting total of 165 for the loss of 8 wickets against Royal Challengers Bangalore.
KKR were cruising well but some late fight back by RCB bowlers put some restrain on KKR's run charge towards the closing stages of the game.
Zaheer Khan, who finished with the figures of 2 for 31, got rid of dangerous Gautam Gambhir who got out after scoring a 39-ball 64 with the help of 9 fours and 1 six.
Seamer Vinay Kumar and spinner Muttiah Muralitharan also picked up two wickets apiece to dent KKR's run charge.
Gambhir scored a quickfire 28-ball 50 that included 8 boundaries and one six. Kolkata Knight Riders were 135 for the loss of three wickets after the end of 16 overs.
KKR lost Manvinder Bisla and Yusuf Pathan in quick succession after Gambhir's fifty. Gambhir was well supported by Bisla, who also made a fiery contribution of 46 runs off 29 balls.
Bisla slammed 3 huge sixes and 2 fours in his flashy knock. Bisla was dismissed by veteran spinner Muttiah Muralitharan. The duo of Gambhir and Bisla added 65 runs for the second wicket.
Skipper Daniel Vettori gave crucial breakthrough to Royal Challengers Bangalore as he got rid Kolkata Knight Riders' Jacques Kallis.
Vettori dismissed Jacques Kallis who scored a quickfire 23-ball 22 with the help of three fours and a lone six. Kallis' edge was finely pouched by wicketkeeper AB de Villiers behind the wickets.
Openers Gautam Gambhir and Jacques Kallis gave Kolkata Knight Riders rollicking start as the duo added 60 runs for the opening wicket against Royal Challengers Bangalore.
Kolkata Knight Riders were 92 for the loss of one wicket after the end of 10 overs.
The 10th match of the IPL was delayed by 20 minutes due to some electrical problem at the Chinnaswamy stadium.
Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Daniel Vettori won the toss and decided to field.
RCB's Chris Gayle, who sat out due to fitness issues in the last match, returned to the playing eleven as Andrew McDonald made way for him.
KKR made two changes as they brought in Shakib Al Hasan and Ryan ten Doeschate in place of Brendon McCullum and Sunil Narine.
Their consistent line outside the off stump and slightly shorter length had the Royal Challengers' batsmen tied down. The required run-rate eventually soared out of control, leaving the home side playing catch-up throughout.
One of Kallis' two early strikes removed the biggest threat in the Royal Challengers line-up, Chris Gayle, before he could do any damage. After having Cheteshwar Pujara caught at slip with a ball that angled into him and bounced a little more than usual, Kallis simply presented Gayle with a short ball. With only a single added to the total after Pujara was dismissed, Gayle's shot was a response to pressure and he top-edged a pull to midwicket.
Responsibility then fell on Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers' shoulders and neither was able to get the job done as Balaji brought a second wave of attack. Kohli was beaten twice by Balaji before getting a leading edge to point. De Villiers followed in the next over, bowled by a beautiful delivery which angled in from a good length and straightened to hit the off stump.
Balaji continued to trouble the batsmen with his line. He had further reward when Mayank Agarwal spooned a catch to extra cover and then bowled Daniel Vettori with a slower ball to complete his quadruple haul. He should have had a fifth when Saurabh Tiwary swung violently and presented Shakib Al Hasan with a simple catch at deep square-leg that was fluffed.
By the time Balaji had finished his quota, Royal Challengers were 61 for 6 after 12 overs. Tiwary was the only recognised batsmen at the crease and the required run rate was over 13. It ballooned to over 30 as the innings neared an end, ensuring the Knight Riders were able to comfortably defend a total that, at the halfway mark, appeared a few short.
Despite 165 being the highest total Knight Riders have posted this season, they would have wanted more after establishing a platform from which a score in excess of 200 seemed possible. Captain Gautam Gambhir opened the batting and combined with Kallis and Manvinder Bisla in two aggressive partnerships to take his team to 125 for 1 in the 14th over.
Bisla was preferred over big-hitters like Yusuf Pathan and Ryan ten Doeschate despite Knight Riders' start and he repaid the faith shown in him. He hit the ball with immense power, complementing Gambhir, who showed the deftest of touches with his dab to third man off Muttiah Muralitharan.
The Knight Riders' captain brought up the fastest half-century of the tournament so far, off 28 balls, with a lofted shot over cover but could not press on as much as he should have. Bisla was stumped three balls later, in the first boundary-free over of the innings and the Knight Riders slid steadily from there.
Royal Challengers effected a collapse which saw Knight Riders lose seven wickets for 26 runs. R Vinay Kumar was the chief strangler and used wily changes of pace to dry up the runs. His economical effort was headlined with persistent use of the short ball and he was well backed up by Muralitharan and committed fielding.
The Royal Challengers' bowlers conceded only 50 runs in the last eight overs but their batsmen did not do justice to their efforts in the field.
Teams:
Royal Challengers Bangalore: Daniel Vettori (captain), Mayank Agarwal, AB de Villiers, Chris Gayle, Zaheer Khan, Virat Kohli, Muttiah Muralitharan, Harshal Patel, Cheteshwar Pujara, Saurabh Tiwary, Vinay Kumar.
Kolkata Knight Riders: Gautam Gambhir (captain), Rajat Bhatia, Manvinder Bisla, Jacques Kallis, Brett Lee, Yusuf Pathan, Shakib Al Hasan, Laxmi Ratan Shukla, Ryan ten Doeschate, Manoj Tiwary, Lakshmipathy Balaji.
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