Kevin Pietersen’s 29-ball 62 has virtually spoiled the Rajasthan Royals’s chances entering the semifinals of the IPL III as the Royal Challengers Bangalore, vulnerable in the away games this season, defeated the home team by five wickets here on Wednesday.
It was also the second consecutive defeat for the Royals at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium, where they had won all their seven matches in the Season One.
With this win, the Bangalore side has brightened its chances of making it to the semifinals, which will be played on their home ground. RCB chased down a target of 130 runs in just 15.4 overs, losing just five wickets. The key aspect of their win was that they improved their run rate.
Pietersen, who replaced Cameron White, scored his half century in just 24 balls. He hit two sixes and 10 fours in the innings. Robin Uthappa became the batsman with maximum sixes when he hit his 25th six. It came when he stepped out to Shane Warne and smashed the ball over long on in the ninth over.
Kamran Khan, by picking up dangerous Jacques Kallis for a duck, gave the Royals a ray of hope but a decent second-wicket partnership of 36 runs between Pietersen and Manish Pandey (14) and the subsequent 60- run third-wicket partnership between Uthappa and Pietersen kept the momentum in favour of the visitors.
Earlier, electing to bat, the Royals managed a meagre 130 for six as their key batsmen, including Shane Watson, Michael Lumb, Naman Ojha and Yusuf Pathan, failed to rise to the occasion. Adam Voges and Abhishek Raut came good in the last seven overs to take the team’s total to 130 for 6.
There was no proper coordination among the players. Lumb was run out in the third over trying to take a quick single. Ojha, at the other, was unmoved. Lumb had no chance to return to his crease. A lot was expected of Watson and Pathan but both disappointed the crowd. The spectators wanted to see some big hits from the batsmen. It was not their day.
Watson tried to steady the innings but he became a victim of Kallis. Watson scored just 22 runs off 25 balls with three fours. Pathan threw his wicket away, trying to play straight off a fuller length ball from Dale Steyn.
Amit Paunikar, who came in place of Faiz Fazal, tried to pull the very first ball he faced but succeeded only in edging one to wicket keeper Robin Uthappa.
On the other hand, Royal Challengers bowled with discipline. Drafted into the playing XI, Pankaj Singh (2/27) was the most successful bowler with two wickets while Steyn, Kallis and R Vinay Kumar took one wicket each.
