Strong Gayle wins it for Bangalore

Opener smashes 38 off 12 in rain-affected IPL match.

BANGALORE:

Chris Gayle smashed a 12-ball 38 as Royal Challengers Bangalore posted a four-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders in an Indian Premier League match.

The West Indies opener hit two sixes and six fours as Bangalore achieved a rain-revised target of 102 with three balls to spare in a 13-overs-a-side game to make sure of a place in the semi-finals.

Gayle started aggressively, hitting Australian paceman Brett Lee for four boundaries in the opening over and then cracking two successive sixes in the next over bowled by seamer Jaidev Unadkat. He fell in the third over attempting a big shot, caught by Jacques Kallis off Lee. Kallis took two wickets for 16 runs in three overs.

Earlier, Yusuf Pathan top-scored for Kolkata with 36, adding 53 for the fourth wicket with Manoj Tiwary. He hit three sixes and two fours in his 24-ball knock.

Karthik battles to keep Punjab in race

Dinesh Karthik smashed five sixes in his 33-ball 69 to power Kings XI Punjab to a six-wicket victory over Kochi Tuskers Kerala.

He put on 111 for the third wicket with Australian Shaun Marsh (42) as Punjab surpassed Kochi’s total of 178 for seven with seven balls to spare for their fifth win in 11 games of the Twenty20 tournament.

Sri Lankan Jayawardene earlier hit two sixes and eight fours in his 52-ball 76 to help Kochi post a challenging total. He added 93 for the opening wicket with New Zealander Brendon McCullum, who hit a 27-ball 32.

Jayawardene, who reached his half-century with a six off leg-spinner Piyush Chawla, was run out in the last over. Owais Shah was the other main scorer with a 12-ball 23.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 15^th, 2011.