Bengaluru: On Saturday night at the M Chinnnaswamy Stadium, the weather was grey. The colour was supplied by men in dazzling shades of red, black and gold. After persistent rain swept the city on match eve, there was a lot of chatter about rain playing spoilsport. The weather stayed pleasant, but it still rained. Only, it was fours and sixes this time.
At the end of a close, pulsating contest, Royal Challengers Bengaluru pulled off a last ball, two-run win over Chennai Super Kings to reclaim their position at the top of the table. In one of their best chases of the season, the struggling CSK momentarily came to life but fell heartbreakingly short.
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Defending 15 runs in the last over, left-arm pacer Yash Dayal dismissed MS Dhoni and won the match for his team. The surface has come under a lot of scrutiny over the past couple of seasons, but the batting-friendly vibe of the stadium returned with a bang.
Earlier, the left-right combination of Jacob Bethell (55; 33b; 8x4; 2x6) and Virat Kohli (62; 33b; 5x5; 5x6) gave RCB a rollicking beginning, the opening association producing 97 runs in 59 deliveries.
But that was soup before the feast for the spectators as Romario Shepherd smashed an unbeaten 14-ball 53 (4x4; 6x6), the joint second-fastest half-century in the IPL . Shepherd’s assault yielded 33 runs off the 19th over, bowled by pacer Khaleel Ahmed, to propel RCB to 213/5 batting first. If not for a middle-overs slowdown led by skipper Rajat Patidar’s laboured 15-ball 11, the hosts could have put yet more runs on the board.
Bethell, who made his IPL debut against Delhi Capitals last week, owned the stage early on and ensured his team did not miss the explosive start often given by fellow Englishman Phil Salt, who is out due to illness.
In the third over, Bethell launched Khaleel over the deep midwicket boundary before Kohli joined the party, heaving the last two deliveries of the over for as many maximums.
As the duo tore into the listless CSK bowling attack, the visitors did themselves no favours as Matheesha Pathirana collided with Ravindra Jadeja and ensured Bethell — then on 27 — was offered a lifeline in the fourth over.
At the end of a close, pulsating contest, Royal Challengers Bengaluru pulled off a last ball, two-run win over Chennai Super Kings to reclaim their position at the top of the table. In one of their best chases of the season, the struggling CSK momentarily came to life but fell heartbreakingly short.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel.
Defending 15 runs in the last over, left-arm pacer Yash Dayal dismissed MS Dhoni and won the match for his team. The surface has come under a lot of scrutiny over the past couple of seasons, but the batting-friendly vibe of the stadium returned with a bang.
Earlier, the left-right combination of Jacob Bethell (55; 33b; 8x4; 2x6) and Virat Kohli (62; 33b; 5x5; 5x6) gave RCB a rollicking beginning, the opening association producing 97 runs in 59 deliveries.
But that was soup before the feast for the spectators as Romario Shepherd smashed an unbeaten 14-ball 53 (4x4; 6x6), the joint second-fastest half-century in the IPL . Shepherd’s assault yielded 33 runs off the 19th over, bowled by pacer Khaleel Ahmed, to propel RCB to 213/5 batting first. If not for a middle-overs slowdown led by skipper Rajat Patidar’s laboured 15-ball 11, the hosts could have put yet more runs on the board.
Bethell, who made his IPL debut against Delhi Capitals last week, owned the stage early on and ensured his team did not miss the explosive start often given by fellow Englishman Phil Salt, who is out due to illness.
In the third over, Bethell launched Khaleel over the deep midwicket boundary before Kohli joined the party, heaving the last two deliveries of the over for as many maximums.
As the duo tore into the listless CSK bowling attack, the visitors did themselves no favours as Matheesha Pathirana collided with Ravindra Jadeja and ensured Bethell — then on 27 — was offered a lifeline in the fourth over.
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