Bangalore crush Deccan by nine wickets

Royal Challengers Bangalore 86 for 1 (Dravid 35*) beat Deccan Chargers 82 (Kumble 4-16) by nine wickets

In a yawn-inducing crawl, Deccan Chargers meandered to 82, the lowest total of the season, and Royal Challengers Bangalore knocked it off without much fuss to book their spot in the next Champions League.

Not many people bothered to turn up for the game, nine Deccan batsmen scored less than five runs and a dull, almost anaesthetic, atmosphere prevailed through their innings. Adam Gilchrist's early dismissal set the tone for the innings: It was a slow gentle full toss from Anil Kumble and while it was in its trajectory you felt it was going to be smashed for a six but Gilchrist contrived to hit it to deep backward square-leg where Jacques Kallis took a neat catch.

It was that kind of a dull and dreary night. Perhaps the loss in semi-final had sapped Deccan, perhaps it was just one of those nights when nothing went right for them and it made for almost painful watching experience.

Bangalore ticked off all the boxes that were required of them: Kumble showed his intent by opening against Gilchrist, Praveen Kumar mixed his cutters with slower ones in a tight spell, and Dale Steyn, though not as pacy as he has been in this tournament so far, was accurate to keep the batsmen in check. Monish Mishra played all around a straight delivery from Praveen to be trapped in front and Rohit Sharma threw his wicket away with a lame pull shot to mid-on.

Ruthless Mumbai march into final

Mumbai Indians 184 for 5 (Tiwary 52*, Rayudu 40, Pollard 33*) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore149 for 9 (Taylor 31*, Pollard 3-17) by 35 runs

Everything changed in the last five overs of the Mumbai Indians' innings. The game was in a deadlock at the end of 15 overs with Mumbai on 107 for 4 - some might have even felt that Royal Challengers Bangalore held the edge - but things took a dramatic turn from there on. Saurabh Tiwary hit an enterprising half-century and Kieron Pollard played a delightful cameo to charge Mumbai to 184 for 5 at the DY Patil Stadium. It was a bridge too far even for the batting-heavy Bangalore and they never really threatened to get anywhere close to the target. The 35-run win took Mumbai to the final, and sealed their qualification for the Champions League Twenty20 to be held in September.

It was always going to be a difficult chase and things got really tough for Bangalore in the tenth over with the fall of Robin Uthappa and Rahul Dravid off successive deliveries. Bangalore had reached 80 for 2 from nine overs and had already lost Kevin Pietersen to a smart leg-side stumping by Ambati Rayudu off Harbhajan Singh; they then suffered the twin blows that effectively killed the contest. Uthappa was in hot form, collecting 18 runs from Harbhajan's over with the help of two thumping sixes, but he dragged a slower one from Pollard straight to deep midwicket.

Before Bangalore could recover from that asphyxiating blow, they lost Dravid, who had played a fluent knock, to a run-out resulting from a misunderstanding with Ross Taylor. Pollard removed both Virat Kohli and Manish Pandey and though Taylor hung around for a while, he couldn't produce any miracle tonight. Bangalore were left to rue their ordinary effort in the field in the last five overs where they lost the game.

Bangalore thrashed by 57 runs

Mumbai Indians 191 for 4 (Rayudu 46, Duminy 42*, McLaren 40) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 134 for 9 (Kohli 37, Pollard 3-28) by 57 runs

Royal Challengers Bangalore's final league game was delayed by an hour due to a couple of low-intensity blasts outside the stadium. The organisers decided to go ahead with the match, and spectators were ushered into the stands amid heightened security.

Once the match began, Mumbai Indians, already in the semi-finals, sent a strong message to their rivals by crushing second-placed Bangalore, whose net run-rate took a beating but remained just high enough to make them favourites for a semi-final spot. Mumbai also brushed aside any criticism about them being overly reliant on orange-cap holder and captain Sachin Tendulkar, whose rare failure didn't prevent the table-toppers from amassing 191 on a greenish track.

Ambati Rayudu has been the best of the ICL returnees this season, and added to his growing reputation with another power-hitting cameo that jumpstarted Mumbai after a dawdling start. Kieron Pollard briefly showed why he was so sought-after during this year's auction, after which JP Duminy's clinical finishing silenced the home crowd, as it had when he lashed an unbeaten 99 in the Champions League.

Needing to score at nearly 10 an over from the outset, Bangalore were rarely in the chase, plodding to 12 after three overs and losing both openers on 34 in the Powerplay. There was still hope for a deep Bangalore batting line-up, but once Harbhajan Singh removed both Kevin Pietersen and Rahul Dravid in quick succession, the required-rate spiralled above 13. That proved too much even for the home side's biggest hitters, Robin Uthappa and Ross Taylor, both of whom were foxed by slower ones, and Bangalore's focus shifted to reducing the margin of defeat and keeping their net run-rate from slinking too low.

Seamers set up Bangalore win

Royal Challengers Bangalore 132 for 5 (Pietersen 62) beat Rajasthan Royals 130 for 6 by 5 wickets

On a slow pitch that lacked bounce, Royal Challengers Bangalore restricted Rajasthan Royals to 130 before they knocked it off without much fuss to win a crucial encounter in Jaipur. With this crushing win, Bangalore now move to second position in the points table.

It was a disciplined performance from Bangalore who kept things simple and let Rajasthan's top order collapse under the pressure of setting a target. Shane Warne said at the toss that he reckoned 165-170 was a par total and perhaps, the attempt to set a big target did them in. The pitch too, certainly, played its part and they lost their way.

The chase was over in a blink, with Kevin Pietersen taking complete control of the innings with an entertaining and aggressive knock. He looted 18 runs in the fourth over, bowled by Kamran Khan, with the help of four boundaries - a slapped four, a muscled hit over mid-off, a scorching off-drive and a pulled six. When he collected three more boundaries in the sixth, bowled by Adam Voges, Bangalore were comfortably on course. The only hope left for Rajasthan was whether Warne could produce any magic but Pietersen and Robin Uthappa went after him in style to deliver the killer blow.

Harmeet Singh, Rohit Sharma shore up Deccan

Deccan Chargers 151 for 6 (Rohit 51, Steyn 3-18) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 138 (Dravid 49, RP 2-21, Ojha 2-22, Harmeet 2-24) by 13 runs

Deccan Chargers survived three huge blows in the first two overs of the match, and some more towards the end by Robin Uthappa, to keep alive their hopes of a semi-final berth. In a match that lurched wildly one way and then another, Harmeet Singh delivered the most decisive blow as Deccan held their nerve and eked out a 13-run win to move up to fifth in the points table.

There were several moments in the match when it seemed Royal Challengers Bangalore had nailed the decisive advantage. First, when Dale Steyn took three wickets in first two overs, including those of Adam Gilchrist and Hershelle Gibbs, to reduce Deccan to 14 for 3; then, when Rahul Dravid creamed a classy and effortless 35-ball 49 to put Bangalore right on track in their run-chase; and again, when Uthappa struck two towering sixes off Ryan Harris in the 17th over to reduce the target to 18 from 12 balls.

That's when Harmeet delivered the blow from which there was no comeback for Bangalore. Bowling his back-of-the-hand slower deliveries, he ended Uthappa's swashbuckling innings, and effectively ruined Bangalore's run-chase. That over went for just one run, and it was clear which team would end up the winner.

Teams have struggled at overhauling even modest totals at this ground, and it was a similar story today, thanks to the conditions which make it a far more even contest between bat and ball than most other venues - the boundaries were much bigger, ensuring shots which would have cleared the ground elsewhere stayed within the arena, and the pitch was slow and assisted spin, causing several batsmen to mis-time lofted shots.

All-round Bangalore crush Kolkata

Royal Challengers Bangalore 162 for 3 (Dravid 52, Uthappa 50*) beat Kolkata Knight Riders 160 for 9 (McCullum 45, Gayle 34, Vinay 3-23, Kallis 2-31) by seven wickets

Royal Challengers Bangalore were inspired by their bowlers and a delightful half-century from Rahul Dravid in a seven-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders that propelled them to second place in the points table. In front of a boisterous crowd at the Chinnaswamy Stadium, the teams served up an exciting encounter that, for much of its duration, retained the frenetic flow that Twenty20 was meant to provide. Kolkata's big names blazed with the bat but their performance was undermined by some crafty bowling in the middle overs. Bangalore's successful chase combined Dravid's conventional touch with Robin Uthappa's ruthless flourish to seal a morale-boosting victory and leave Kolkata struggling in the bottom three.

Anil Kumble's decision to field had been prompted by Bangalore's good track record while chasing at the Chinnaswamy and his batsmen didn't let him down. But the victory had been set up by a combined effort with the ball which redressed the damage caused by poor spells at the start of Kolkata's innings.

In conditions favouring swing and movement, Praveen Kumar and Dale Steyn had dragged the ball too short and provided much width that Sourav Ganguly and Chris Gayle dealt with harshly. Sixty-one runs came in the Powerplay, the highest for Kolkata this IPL, and they had got there through a series of cuts, pulls and drives that their opening pair used with relentless regularity. Jacques Kallis, too, bowled short and was slashed by Ganguly over third man and Kumble, expensive in his first over, was late-cut for four.

Suman, bowlers keep Deccan alive

Deccan Chargers 139 for 4 (Suman 55, Symonds 27*, Ashwin 2-13) beat Chennai Super Kings 138 for 8 (Raina 52, Harris 3-18) by six wickets

Deccan Chargers continued to climb up the points table by beating Chennai Super Kings comprehensively by six wickets at their "home" venue in Nagpur to draw level with Royal Challengers Bangalore, Kolkata Knight Riders and the losing side. The win was set up by their bowlers, after MS Dhoni decided to bat on a scorching afternoon, who restricted Chennai to 138, allowing the batsmen to chase at a comfortable pace despite two early jolts and the sapping heat. Deccan struggled against spin initially, losing three wickets to the slow stuff, but rode on another fifty from T Suman and Andrew Symonds' cool head to seal victory with five balls to spare.

The only bit that really went right for Chennai was the toss, which Dhoni won and had little hesitation in choosing to bat. When Chennai accelerated from 21 after three overs to 55 for 1 from six it seemed a run-fest was on the cards. As it turned out, Chennai had little to celebrate thereafter. In the eighth over, M Vijay called for a suicidal second run and that momentary brain freeze changed the complexion of Chennai's innings. It was another example of the schizophrenic series he's had, with aborted starts amid some match-winning knocks, and from there Deccan never let the initiative slip.

From 65 for 2 in eight overs, Chennai slowed down to reach the half-way stage at 74 for 2 with Symonds and Pragyan Ojha keeping a check with stump-to-stump bowling. Chennai's predicament had been brought about by their batsmen's urge to dominate and as wickets fell around him, Suresh Raina began to improvise cleverly. He moved to leg to clip the ball fine and walked down the pitch to upset the bowlers, but also reined in his attacking instincts, knocking the ball in the gaps during the middle overs.

Symonds and Suman keep Deccan alive

Deccan Chargers 186 for 3 (Suman 78*, Symonds 53*) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 184 for 6 (Kallis 68, Kohli 58, Ojha 2-24) by seven wickets

It was just another day at the office for Deccan Chargers until T Suman became their first Indian domestic cricketer to perform, guiding an improbable chase and keeping his team alive in the tournament. Good start with the ball, falling apart at the end - it was a familiar script until Suman wrote new lines, scoring 78 off 57 from No 3. Andrew Symonds, who had conceded 23 in the 17th over, facilitated a 21-run 17th over during the chase en route to 53 off 24 balls, as Deccan went about scoring more than 100 in the last 10 overs.

Deccan bowled well to have Royal Challengers Bangalore at 68 for 4 in the 11th over, but seemed to have forgotten how to bowl when they went for 92 runs in the last six. Once again, during the chase, Adam Gilchrist scored a quick thirty but failed to convert it into anything substantial.

Suman, however, had been promoted to No. 3 and Deccan had reached the 11th over by the time Gilchrist's 19-ball 32 ended. Gilchrist didn't get much strike, and Suman had put his share to good use, reaching 41 off 34. It wasn't the cleanest innings: stylish hits off length balls were offset by streaky boundaries off inside edges.

In the next over Rohit Sharma fell too, leaving Deccan with 90 to get off 50 balls. The turnaround started with a thick edge from Symonds, but he followed with a four off a yorker next ball. Suman followed suit, hitting Anil Kumble for a six to bring up his fifty in the next over, and 62 off 33 didn't read much worse than from where they started.

The streaky shots from Suman had disappeared by then, and he continued with a six off Vinay Kumar in the 16th over, but the symbolic moment was yet to come. Symonds had to make good for his bowling effort, and make good he did by thumping Praveen Kumar. An edge flew over the keeper, a slower ball was deposited over midwicket, and a yorker-gone-wrong hit into the sight screen. Forty-nine from 24 balls had become 28 off 18, and from there it was only a matter of avoiding the famous Deccan choke.

Suman took the lead, hitting Dale Steyn for four after he seemed to have found a good yorker rhythm. Symonds upset Kallis' rhythm when he missed the yorker by about a foot, and finished the game by hitting Vinay for a six and a four off the first two balls of the last over.

It should never have been that big a chase for Deccan. They had Bangalore struggling, but let them double their 14-over score, vindicating their reputation as the worst bowling side at the death, taking their tournament economy-rate in last six overs to 11.44 an over. Next-worst is 9.89.

Despite little support from Harmeet Singh, RP Singh and Mitchell Marsh, Ryan Harris had managed to keep Bangalore down to 46 for 1 at the end of the Powerplay. Harris went for just five in two of those overs. Ojha and Symonds followed Harris' good work with three wickets in three overs, including the massive ones of Robin Uthappa and Ross Taylor.

In the last six overs, though, Jacques Kallis and Virat Kohli went berserk in the absence of yorkers and abundance of length balls and hit six sixes and eight fours in the last six overs, as opposed to two sixes and seven fours in the first 14. Kallis reiterated his importance in the line-up with his sixth fifty of the tournament, and Kohli showed he could dabble in the power-hitting business too, going from 12 off 18 to 58 off 35. One of his sixes hit the roof at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, but by the end of the night their semi-final prospects - almost a certainty before the match started - had taken a hit.

Collingwood, bowlers set up big win for Delhi

Delhi Daredevils 184 for 5 (Collingwood 75*, Sehwag 35, Appanna 2-24) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 147 for 9 (Kallis 54, Sangwan 3-22, Mishra 3-32) by 37 runsPaul Collingwood outshone a glittering batting line-up to give Delhi Daredevils a big total, which their bowlers defended comfortably despite a late assault from Ross Taylor, who tried to sweep Bangalore to victory. Virender Sehwag and David Warner played their cameos, but it was Collingwood who carried Delhi in the later half of their innings.

The first half of the match was a series of punches and counter-punches. Bangalore bounced back from aggressive knocks with wickets, but kept getting pushed back by knocks even more forceful. Sehwag's 22-ball 35 was ended by Abhimanyu Mithun, only for Warner to start hurting Bangalore. A smart catch from Virat Kohli stopped Warner at 33 off 22, only for Collingwood to provide the innings the final, and most important, thrust with an unbeaten 46-ball 75.

After Anil Kumble left out Dale Steyn and Praveen Kumar to accommodate Taylor and left-arm spinner KP Appanna, Bangalore's inexperienced attack could have been blown away by Sehwag and Warner. Kumble made sure Delhi didn't run away by bowling a two-run first over, and Mithun responded by removing Sehwag second ball.

Between that, though, Sehwag raised hell, hitting five fours and two sixes, taking Delhi to 35 in 4.2 overs despite that Kumble over. That second six was a demoralising hit off Mithun's first ball in this IPL, but he came right back with one that nipped back at Sehwag. The Bangalore fielders responded, running out Gautam Gambhir, and getting Warner with an overhead catch on the long-on boundary.

Between those wickets, Warner had done some hell-raising himself, hitting three fours and two sixes to take Delhi to 83 in 9.4 overs. The immediate response to that wicket was an elegant straight-drive from Dinesh Karthik, but Bangalore struck again via a blinder from Cameron White at extra cover. This was the lift in fielding standards that the tournament desperately needed.

Collingwood, however, had quietly played himself in by then and reached 14 off 15 courtesy a six-inch back-lift six while charging down to Jacques Kallis' slower ball. And his immediate response to Karthik's dismissal was to raise the back lift a little more and punish White with two sixes and a four in his only over, taking Delhi to 111 after 12.

Another loss for sloppy Punjab

Royal Challengers Bangalore 184 for 4 (Pietersen 66*, Kohli 42) beat Kings XI Punjab 180 for 5 (Sangakkara 45, Bopara 42*, Yuvraj 36) by six wickets

An amateurish fielding display from Kings XI Punjab and one over of carnage from Robin Uthappa tipped the match Royal Challengers Bangalore's way after eight overs of sensible batting from Kevin Pietersen and Virat Kohli had kept the game evenly poised. Yet again, only one department clicked for Punjab - it was their batting today - and Brett Lee's meltdown in the 17th over helped Bangalore snap their two-game losing streak.

Punjab were in with a chance till the final four overs, off which Bangalore needed 48 runs. Lee, though, disappeared for 25 runs in the next over: Uthappa sent the first ball, a full toss, over long-on for six; a length ball crashed into the sightscreen after one bounce; two deliveries later Uthappa swung a short delivery over midwicket for six; Lee then gifted five wides with a horror ball down the leg side. After the over Bangalore needed 23 off 18, and Punjab were out of the match.

Uthappa's fireworks came after Pietersen and Kohli stitched together 76 brisk runs without too many big hits. The left-arm spinning pair of Yuvraj Singh and Bipul Sharma kept things tight after the openers departed, but there was little panic from the Bangalore batsmen.

They were helped by some of the worst fielding in the tournament: Sreesanth let go of an absolute dolly at long-on off Kohli in the 14th over, Ravi Bopara let one slip through for four two deliveries later, but perhaps the biggest let-off was when he reprieved Pietersen the ball after Kohli was dismissed with the match still in the balance. Punjab's fielding effort was epitomised by their captain's drop towards the end, Sangakkara not only grassed a chance at extra cover, he even managed to kick the ball over the ropes after the miss.

Punjab were in control during the early part of the Bangalore innings. Jacques Kallis was uncomfortable in his short stay before nicking to the keeper. His opening partner, Manish Pandey, was in better touch, swiping a few trademark boundaries down the ground. However, he couldn't convert his start to a big score once again, falling for his fifth score between 29 and 42 in the tournament. Then Bipul's economic bowling in the middle overs sent the asking-rate spiraling, but Uthappa's burst ensured that for the second time in the tournament Bangalore chased down a stiff score against Punjab.

Vijay blasts Chennai to vital victory

Chennai Super Kings 162 for 5 (Vijay 78, Raina 40*) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 161 for 4 (Kallis 52, Jakati 2-17) by five wickets

The fear of an early elimination from the tournament drove Chennai Super Kings to deliver their best all-round performance, that too against one of the top teams in the tournament so far. Their propensity to choke despite being in a winning position, like against Kings XI Punjab, threatened to hurt them again in front of their home fans, but some late hitting from Suresh Raina complemented the solid foundation laid by his spinners and an attacking half-century by M Vijay. Chennai won with an over to spare and Royal Challengers Bangalore's 161 wasn't enough.

It was a game that Chennai were always likely to win, after restricting Bangalore to a par score. Teams with in-form local players have been more successful than those without and Vijay was the difference today. An aggressive batsman who rarely plays ungainly strokes, Vijay finally delivered after failing to convert his starts in the earlier games. He showed glimpses of his abilities during a cameo against Rajasthan Royals before a run out cut short his innings, but today he was determined to go one step further, sometimes two or three, stepping down the pitch and carting the bowlers without sacrificing his style.

Hayden, for once, had to ride on the passenger seat. At the end of three overs, he had faced just one ball for no runs. Vijay faced the other 17 and had already zipped to 37, 24 of those coming off a single over from Praveen Kumar. Vijay began with textbook boundaries, punching Praveen past cover and flicking Dale Steyn past square leg. Bangalore weren't prepared for the explosion in the third over when Vijay opened fire. A short delivery was hooked for six, a slower one was dismissed over wide long-on, a leg-side delivery was worked past short fine leg and a length ball was clipped over deep square leg. Vijay's footwork was complemented by his placement and a right dose of power.

A worried Anil Kumble brought himself on in the fourth over and immediately checked the scoring, cutting back on pace and cramping the batsmen for room. A subdued Hayden sashayed down the pitch and was foxed by a googly. Kumble had conceded just nine off his first two overs, but support wasn't forthcoming from the other end as the second spinner, Pietersen, got pasted.

Vijay, who had reached his fifty off 29 balls in the eighth over, thumped three sixes off Pietersen over the on side, using his feet on each occasion. However, an ambitious attempt at a fourth led to his dismissal, scooping to wide long-on, and it was a moment of relief for Bangalore. Kumble continued to strangle the scoring after Vijay's departure but a couple of quick wickets would have made it closer affair. Raina and MS Dhoni improvised, nudged balls in to the gaps and kept the asking-rate within manageable levels. But ambitious pulls from Dhoni and S Badrinath led to top edges and nearly altered the script. Raina, though, kept his cool and an inside-out scoop to a front foot no-ball from Vinay Kumar led to wild celebrations and relief in the Chennai camp.

It was Chennai's better bowling effort that set up the victory by preventing Bangalore from setting an impregnable target. Shadab Jakati said in an interview that the pitch was slow and had gripped. He and Muttiah Muralitharan conceded just 37 in eight overs.

A half-century partnership between Jacques Kallis and Virat Kohli set Bangalore up for something bigger after Robin Uthappa threatened during a cameo, aided by yet another dropped catch. The drop cost Chennai 21 runs, and it brought Kallis and Kohli together for a stand of 63 for the third wicket. They focused on keeping wickets in hand and kept dropping the ball to pick up singles against the spinners. Murali bowled round the wicket to keep Kallis in check and Jakati fired the quicker ones at the stumps.

The problem of full-tosses persisted for Chennai but ironically, it was that ball which helped break the partnership. Kohli chipped down the track to a full toss and scooped it straight to Vijay at long-on. It was the start of the best over the day, as Kallis tried to pinch a cheeky single to extra cover and was run out by a sharp pick up and throw by Raina. It turned out to be a double-wicket maiden for Chennai.

Chennai, however, undid the good work by letting Cameron White and Pietersen share a brisk stand of 44 in 4.3 overs. White wrecked Thilan Thushara's figures by making room and swatting him over the onside, before Pietersen walloped him over long off for a big six. The target of 162, as Kumble later said, was about 15 short of an ideal score. Bangalore remained at No.2 but Chennai moved up two spots to No.5.

Kedar Jadhav helps Delhi end losing streak

Delhi 183 for 4 (Jadhav 50*, Warner 33) beat Bangalore 166 for 9 ( Pandey 39, Kohli 38*) by 17 runs

David Warner exploded at the top and Kedar Jadhav provided a fiery finish to charge Delhi Daredevils to a strong 183, which they defended with relative ease. It was Delhi's first win after three losses and also marked Royal Challengers Bangalore's first loss at home.

The pitch was drier than the previous tracks at the Chinnaswamy Stadium and Bangalore had to do much of the damage against the new ball if they were to hunt down the strong total. However, Jacques Kallis and Manish Pandey were kept relatively quiet by tight spells from Dirk Nannes and Umesh Yadav. Nannes hit the deck hard and moved the ball enough to upset batsmen's timing and Yadav, the fastest Indian bowler currently going around in the circuit, with speeds consistently ticking over 140 kmph, surprised the batsmen with his line, length and bounce. And it wasn't all brawn from the youngster; he kept it relatively full to Kallis but hurled a few short deliveries at Pandey to keep him on a leash.

Bangalore's second opportunity to break free came in the eight over with the introduction of Andrew McDonald and Amit Mishra. It was the make or break moment, with Bangalore needing 129 from 13 overs, but Mishra slipped in fine spell to turn the game decisively in Delhi's favour. Mishra removed Kallis with a googly and induced Robin Uthappa to edge the reverse-sweep to inflict a double-strike from which Bangalore couldn't' recover. McDonald went for 18 runs in his first seven deliveries - Uthappa producing the shot of the day with a nonchalantly-hit six over the straight boundary - but bounced back in his second over by taking out Pandey, and when Rahul Dravid ran himself out in the same over the chase had derailed.

There was just one other moment of thrilling drama and it was provided by AB de Villiers, who jumped back at long-on to take an amazing one-handed catch, even as the ball appeared to have passed him, to get rid of Praveen Kumar.

Robin Uthappa's blitz floors Chennai

Royal Challengers Bangalore 171 for 5 (Uthappa 68*, Murali 3-25) beat Chennai Super Kings135 for 7 (R Vinay Kumar 4-40) by 36 runs

Royal Challengers Bangalore 171 for 5 (Uthappa 68*, Murali 3-25) beat Chennai Super Kings135 for 7 (R Vinay Kumar 4-40) by 36 runs
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details
How they were out

"I'm just an ordinary cricketer who is working hard," said Robin Uthappa during the mid-innings break. His 38-ball 68 that rescued Royal Challengers Bangalore's innings, however, was anything but ordinary. Uthappa's eleventh-hour blitz helped his team recover from a shaky start and sluggish middle overs, after which Bangalore's bowlers throttled Chennai Super Kings to move to the top of the points table.

Chennai took wickets during the early and middle overs but it was the final 19 deliveries of Bangalore's innings, where Uthappa blazed away, that made the difference. Dropped on 5 and 25, Uthappa helped Bangalore take 52 runs off them, lifting his team from 119 after 17 overs to 171 for 5, when at one stage 150 looked difficult.

It was the speed and power with which Uthappa collected his runs that was dazzling: his last 39 came off ten balls. The over that swung the momentum Bangalore's way was the penultimate one, in which Uthappa - whose improvisation makes him the ideal Twenty20 batsman - struck three successive sixes off L Balaji to ransack 24 from six balls.

Until that explosion, Bangalore had struggled. From the time their talisman opener Jacques Kallis was bowled for 19 in 4.4 overs, ending a splendid run of four unbeaten innings, the home side failed to overcome Chennai's bowlers. On a juiced-up surface, an eagerly-awaited contest began with Chennai's new-ball duo wondering just what was needed to make a breakthrough. They thought they had success in the first over, when a peach of a delivery from Albie Morkel appeared to shave the outer edge of Kallis' bat, but it was not to be.

Manish Pandey rode his luck, following up an inside-edged four to fine leg with a top edge that dropped between two fielders, and then Kallis charged Morkel, slashing a thick outside edge that was lost in the lights by L Balaji at third man. Off the very next delivery, Kallis edged Morkel wide of a diving slip for four more.

Once Kallis went for 19, missing a straight one from Balaji, Bangalore's innings lost direction. Pandey continued to live dangerously without imposing himself. Then for the second time a wicket immediately followed a boundary. Rahul Dravid rocked back and dispatched Muttiah Muralitharan's fifth delivery for four; the sixth was a topspinner that pitched on middle and leg and beat the bat to crash into the stumps.

When the strategic time-out rolled around - that's the pace at which the innings panned out - Chennai had restricted Bangalore to their poorest start yet, 61 for 2. That soon became 63 for 3 when Pandey slogged Murali and was held by Suresh Raina at mid-on. However, Chennai proceeded to reprieve Uthappa and conceded substantial ground.

Confident after Uthappa's heroics, Bangalore began snuffing out the chase. Praveen Kumar has a knack of getting early wickets and troubling left-hand batsman, and he got Parthiv Patel to edge one in the first over. Chennai struggled during the Powerplay, finishing the six-over block on 29 for 1. Matthew Hayden called for the Mongoose immediately after and hit Kallis for three consecutive fours, but he and George Bailey were unable to get Anil Kumble away. Mixing flippers and googlies exceptionally, Kumble kept a check on runs and the pressure resulted in Hayden being run out by Rahul Dravid's underarm hit.

That breakthrough brought another, and R Vinay Kumar's perfect seam position dismissed Bailey for a woeful 18 from 27 balls. Vinay struck a bigger blow in his next over when he got Suresh Raina to slash to Kallis at third man, and then Kumble sent back M Vijay. The innings never recovered after four wickets had fallen for 17 runs. Vinay went for a few runs but finished with a four-wicket haul to help Bangalore surge ahead of Mumbai Indians in the points table.

Royal Challengers Bangalore Set Up Comprehensive Win

R Vinay Kumar removed Sachin Tendulkar, Dwayne Bravo and Ambati Rayudu in one over to turn what had been a cat-and-mouse game until then, unmistakably Royal Challengers' way, also taking them to the top of the table. He benefited in part from the pressure created by his team-mates' smart swing bowling, changes of pace, bouncers to Indian batsmen, and aggressive spin bowling by Anil Kumble. It was a fitting reversal of roles for a man used to being among the top wicket-takers in Indian domestic cricket, and then watching others steal the spotlight - not the least when his state-mate Abhimanyu Mithun made his international debut ahead of him after just one season of impressive numbers.

There was no role reversal for Jacques Kallis and Manish Pandey, though, who added 50-plus for the first wicket for the third time in a row to scythe through the target without breaking a sweat. Kallis tightened the orange cap around his head, taking his tournament tally to 264 undefeated runs, but Pandey missed a fifty after a good start for the third time in a row.

The Bangalore openers will be the first ones to concede that the night belonged to their bowlers. Praveen Kumar and Dale Steyn laid the foundation by controlling the rampaging batting line-up that had scored 200-plus in both their previous matches. Praveen, with his swing either side in his first over, sent the message that scoring wouldn't be that easy against this attack, and Steyn in his first removed Sanath Jayasuriya with a quick outswinger.