Royal Challengers Bangalore kept their IPL play-off hopes alive with a thrilling five-wicket victory against Chennai Super Kings on a turning Ranchi track yesterday.
Chasing a modest 139, Bangalore were made to toil as spinners Ravichandran Ashwin (2-16), who had figures of 3-1-3-1 in his first spell, and Samuel Badree (0-15) maintained a tight leash on the scoring rate.
Opener Chris Gayle’s uncharacteristically slow 50-ball 46, where he played and missed several times, nervously set Bangalore on their way before a late flourish by AB de Villiers (28 runs off 14 balls) and Yuvraj Singh (13 not out off nine balls) took them past the finish line.
They were 45-1 at the end of 10 overs but had enough firepower to register 97 runs in the next 9.5 overs to seal the win.
Ashwin was guilty of failing to snatch a de Villiers slice to extra cover off left-arm spinner Ravindra Jadeja in the 15th over when the Bangalore batsman had not even opened his account. The visitors were 75-2 at that stage.
Dhoni will also rue trusting David Hussey’s off-breaks more than Badree’s leg-spin when Bangalore needed 29 runs from 18 balls.
Hussey, who had earlier scored 25 for CSK in his first IPL match since moving from the commentary box to the pitch, was taken apart by De Villiers, who hit him for a six and a four before collecting 15 runs from the Australian’s first over.
The equation was down to 14 from 12 but Jadeja had Yuvraj in a bind by conceding just four runs in the penultimate over.
Now 10 were needed off the last six balls and once again Dhoni tossed the ball to Hussey, who had claimed De Villiers off the last ball of his earlier over.
Yuvraj smacked Hussey’s first ball for a six and No7 Abu Nechim Ahmed struck a four off the fifth ball to clinch the victory.
Earlier, Suresh Raina overcame early jitters to hit an unbeaten 62 off 48 balls and lead Chennai’s run charge.
Varun Aaron had been the pick of the RCB bowlers, taking 2-29 as CSK were reduced to a very modest total.
