Opener Chris Gayle bludgeoned his way to an astonishing 57-ball 117 as Royal Challengers Bangalore hammered Kings XI Punjab by 138 runs in the Indian Premier League match in Bangalore, on Wednesday.
- Scorecard
Punjab paid a heavy price for dropping Gayle twice --- on 27 and 53 -- as the left-handed Caribbean went on to hit his fifth IPL century and led his side to a mammoth 226 for three.
It was a humongous task for a demoralised Punjab to chase such a total and they capitulated under pressure. All they managed was a paltry 88 in 13.4 overs to suffer one of their humiliating losses in the IPL.
It was second biggest win in IPL history by run-margin, only behind Kolkata Knight Riders's 140-run victory over RCB in the 2008 edition.
Left-arm paceman Sreenath Aravind, playing his first match of the tournament rocked Punjab's batting as he claimed four for 27, while Mitchell Starc continued his good form to claim four for 15 as he polished off the lower-order.
Punjab batsmen inexplicably surrendered without any fight and were reduced to 34 for five at the end of the sixth over, with no chance of redeeming themselves.
When Starc bowled his compatriot Mitchell Johnson and Anureet Singh in the ninth over, Punjab were gasping at 49 for eight and staring at the lowest total of the tournament (58 by Rajasthan Royals in 2009).
But Axar Patel saved them blushes with a fighting innings of 40 not out off 21 balls.
With this win, Bangalore have enhanced their chances to make it to the play-offs as they jumped to third spot in the table with 11 points from 10 matches.
Earlier, Gayle tormented the Kings XI Punjab bowlers with a whirlwind century that powered Royal Challengers Bangalore to a mammoth 226 for three in their 20 overs.
Before being caught and bowled by left-arm spinner Patel, Gayle entertained the fans by hitting 12 sixes and seven fours as hapless Punjab players kept watching the shots soaring over their heads and vanishing in the stands at the M Chinnaswamy stadium.
With skipper Virat Kohli (32), Gayle shared a blistering opening stand of 119 runs in just 11.2 overs and later with AB de Villiers (47 not out) he raised a 71-run partnership in just 5.4 overs.
Gayle completed his century by guiding a Mitchell Johnson full-toss behind square on the leg side for a boundary and celebrated in grand style as he emulated the celebration style of Real Madrid footballer Cristiano Ronaldo.
The carnage began in the second over when Australian paceman Johnson pitched it up and was punished by Gayle, who creamed off 20 runs in that over with two sixes and two fours.
The burly left-hander was in full flow and next to bear the brunt of his fury was Sandeep Sharma, who conceded 23 runs in the next over. Sandeep though had created a chance to get Gayle out after being hit for a six in the first ball. Skipper George Bailey dropped a skier at long-off next ball, running back. Gayle was on 27 at that time.
Bangalore crossed 50-run mark in just four overs even as Kohli was playing a second-fiddle from the other end. The right-hander got into groove with two exquisite shots over extra cover.
Despite being denied a six off Anureet Singh when the ball on his shot touched the cable of the spider cam, Gayle completed his half-century off just 22 balls.
Gayle also completed 3000 runs in IPL with a single off Anureet in the eighth over. He is only the fourth player do so.
Axar Patel could have got wicket of Gayle in his first ball but Manan Vohra, who replaced Virender Sehwag, dropped the Caribbean.
Gayle kept hitting monstrous hits but Kohli was bowled by Sandeep in the 12th over. De Villers played superbly, punishing the Punjab bowlers with seven boundaries.
