IPL-4 (27th May): RCB crush MI, set final against Super Kings

By Team Bellevision
Bellevision Media Network

Chennai, 27 May 2011: Royal Challengers Bangalore complemented Chris Gayle’s knock of 89 runs with a clinical performance in the field that helped them beat Mumbai Indians by 43 runs in second qualifier here on Friday and book a meeting with Chennai Super Kings in the final of IPL-4. The Jamaican - who owns the orange cap having scored over 600 runs so far - took just 47 balls to reach 89, which helped Bangalore post a formidable 185/4 despite a stutter in the dying stages of their innings after being asked to bat by Sachin Tendulkar. Their bowlers then restricted Mumbai to 142/8 to reach the final.

 

Sachin Tendulkar had conjured up hopes of a successful run-chase, blasting a 24-ball 40 but once he was dismissed, Mumbai Indians lost the plot completely. Chasing 186 to win, Aiden Blizzard gave Mumbai a positive start hitting Zaheer Khan for a four past mid-on in the first ball and picked up another boundary four balls later. Tendulkar also got into the act and blasted Sreenath Aravind for a couple of four across cover and over square leg boundary as Mumbai moved to 20 for two in two overs.

 

Daniel Vettori then pressed Gayle into the attack and the West Indies all-rounder did well to frustrate Blizzard with his off-break as Aravind dismissed him in the next over when he tried to play a slog shot over long on. Promoted up the order, Harbhajan used his long handle well to clobber a couple of fours and a six but his 13-run cameo was cut short by Aravind in the sixth over with Pomersbach taking the catch at deep midwicket.

 

Tendulkar kept Mumbai in the hunt and picked up a couple of fours off Aravind and then sent Vettori across the long-on boundary but spinner Syed Mohammad had the opener stumped, beating him in the flight in the eighth over to reduce the Mumbai outfit to 68 for three in the eighth over. A lot was expected from Rohit Sharma (13) but the Mumbaikar disappointed by holing out to Pomersbach in the 11th over by Vettori.

 

 

 

Ambati Rayudu (0) too was trapped in front of wicket on his first ball, while Kieron Pollard’s innings was cut short by a stunning catch by Abhimanyu Mithun as Mumbai slipped to 89 for six in 12.5 overs. James Franklin (16) and Lasith Malinga (7) too couldn’t stay long as the match slipped out of their fingers. Earlier, Sachin Tendulkar’s move to open the bowling with Abu Nechim instead of Lasith Malinga backfired badly, as Gayle took 27 runs off the rookie to take RCB off to a flier after being put in to bat by Mumbai.

 

That also made it the costliest first over in the history of the Indian Premier League. But the intensity didn’t die there as RCB brought up their fifty in just 3.2 overs. Gayle’s opening partner Mayank Aggarwal too played his strokes, which saw Mumbai leaking runs from both the ends, prompting Tendulkar to take the strategic timeout at the first available opportunity at the end of six overs, with RCB at 68 for no loss.

 

Soon it became an all-Bangalore show as RCB brought up their hundred inside 10 overs, which followed Gayle’s 27-ball half century. It was Keiron Pollard who got Mumbai the much-needed first breakthrough, albeit after a 113-run opening partnership, in the 11th over of the Bangalore innings when he dismissed Mayank Aggarwal. He was pouched by Rohit Sharma at long-on after scoring 41 off 31 balls.

 

However, there was no respite for Mumbai as Gayle blasted three sixes in the space of four balls spread across the 13th and 14th over. The former West Indies skipper first sent Pollard soaring over long off in the last ball of the 13th over and then hammered Harbhajan over deep midwicket in consecutive balls as RCB reached 145 for one in 14 overs. Gayle was dismissed by Munaf in the next over with James Franklin taking a good catch at long on but by then the damage was done.

 

Virat Kohli (8) also couldn’t stay long and was sent packing by Nechim in the 16th over. Malinga then pulled off a brilliant diving catch at short third man off Munaf to dismiss Luke Pomersbach (4) as Bangalore slipped to 157 for four in 16.2 overs. However, AB de Villiers (21) and Saurabh Tiwary (8) stayed in the crease and took Bangalore close to the 200-mark.

 

Match Summary

 

Indian Premier League 2011 Mumbai Indians vs Royal Challengers Bangalore, Qualifier 2 MA Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, May 27, 2011

Match Information Umpires: Simon Taufel (Aus) & Asad Rauf (Pak) Third Umpire: Kumar Dharmasena (SL) Match Referee: Roshan Mahanama (SL) Toss: Mumbai Indians (Elected to field) Match Status: Royal Challengers Bangalore won by 43 runs

Batting: Royal Challengers Bangalore Innings

Batsmen Royal Challengers Bangalore (185/4 in 20 ovs) Runs Balls 4’s 6’s SR Mayank Agarwal c R Sharma b K Pollard 41 31 4 2 132.26 Chris Gayle c J Franklin b M Patel 89 47 9 5 189.36 Virat Kohli b A Nechim 8 12 0 0 66.67 AB de Villiers (wk) not out 21 15 0 1 140.00 Luke Pomersbach c L Malinga b M Patel 4 4 0 0 100.00 Saurabh Tiwary not out 8 12 0 0 66.67 Daniel Vettori (c)             Zaheer Khan             Abhimanyu Mithun             Syed Mohammad Jamaluddin             Sreenath Aravind             Extras: b - 0, w - 13, nb - 1, lb - 0 14   Total:(185 for 4 in 20 overs) 185 Run Rate: 9.25

Fall Of Wickets

1/113 (Mayank Agarwal, 10.4 ov.), 2/148 (Chris Gayle, 14.4 ov.), 3/151 (Virat Kohli, 15.2 ov.), 4/157 (Luke Pomersbach, 16.2 ov.)

Bowling: Mumbai Indians

Bowler O M R W Nb Wd ER Abu Nechim 4 0 56 1 1 5 14.0 Harbhajan Singh 4 0 40 0 0 1 10.0 Lasith Malinga 4 0 24 0 0 0 6.0 Munaf Patel 4 0 27 2 0 0 6.8 Rohit Sharma 1 0 14 0 0 0 14.0 Kieron Pollard 3 0 24 1 0 2 8.0

Batting: Mumbai Indians Innings

Batsmen Mumbai Indians (142/8 in 20 ovs) Runs Balls 4’s 6’s SR Aiden Blizzard c M Agarwal b S Aravind 10 11 2 0 90.91 Sachin Tendulkar (c) st de Villiers b Syed Mohammad 40 24 7 0 166.67 Harbhajan Singh c L Pomersbach b S Aravind 13 7 1 1 185.71 Rohit Sharma c L Pomersbach b D Vettori 13 15 1 0 86.67 James Franklin b Z Khan 16 17 0 1 94.12 Ambati Rayudu (wk) lbw b D Vettori 0 1 0 0 0.00 Kieron Pollard c A Mithun b D Vettori 3 6 0 0 50.00 Rajagopal Sathish not out 19 22 1 0 86.36 Lasith Malinga c L Pomersbach b Syed Mohammad 7 5 0 1 140.00 Abu Nechim not out 18 12 1 1 150.00 Munaf Patel             Extras: b - 0, w - 1, nb - 0, lb - 2 3   Total:(142 for 8 in 20 overs) 142 Run Rate: 7.10

Fall Of Wickets

1/23 (Aiden Blizzard, 3.3 ov.), 2/41 (Harbhajan Singh, 5.1 ov.), 3/68 (Sachin Tendulkar, 7.6 ov.), 4/82 (Rohit Sharma, 10.4 ov.), 5/83 (Ambati Rayudu, 10.6 ov.), 6/89 (Kieron Pollard, 12.5 ov.), 7/99 (James Franklin, 14.4 ov.), 8/110 (Lasith Malinga, 15.5 ov.)

Bowling: Royal Challengers Bangalore

Bowler O M R W Nb Wd ER Zaheer Khan 4 0 32 1 0 0 8.0 Sreenath Aravind 3 0 27 2 0 1 9.0 Chris Gayle 3 0 11 0 0 0 3.7 Abhimanyu Mithun 2 0 26 0 0 0 13.0 Daniel Vettori 4 0 19 3 0 0 4.8 Syed Mohammad Jamaluddin 4 0 25 2 0 0 6.2