Royal Challengers set up title clash with Deccan Chargers

JOHANNESBURG: Manish Pandey was a seven-month toddler when Anil Kumble played his first game for India. Now, 19 years later, they came together to joyfully star in Royal Challengers Bangalore’s dramatic entry into Sunday’s final of the DLF Indian Premier League against Deccan Chargers.

The fearless Pandey picked up his second successive man of the match award for his blazing 48 (35 balls, seven fours) as he mocked at the 147-run target set by Chennai Super Kings. Along the way, he grew in stature as he grabbed the opportunity to bat with another legend answering to the name of Rahul Dravid (44, 39 balls, six fours).

It really was Kumble who pulled the game back for Royal Challengers Bangalore with his calm leadership at a time when Chennai Super Kings openers Parthiv Patel (36, 27 balls, seven fours) and Matthew Hayden (26) had put on 61 runs in just seven overs. Marshalling his resources well, he managed to hold back the most expensive Vinay Kumar’s fourth over until the very end.

More than that, he used Roelof van der Merwe’s left-arm spin along with the new ball bowlers Praveen Kumar and Jacques Kallis creatively. Backed by some superb fielding by a unit that desperately wanted to enjoy a win on Saturday, Royal Challengers Bangalore bowlers were able to curtain Chennai Super Kings to just 146 for five in 20 overs.

The fact that last year’s runners-up managed just 85 runs in the 14 overs after Hayden’s fall is a commentary not just on Royal Challengers Bangalore’s determination but also on Chennai Super Kings’ inability to get things going despite Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s ploy of having a left-right combination in those overs.

Dhoni himself was unable to hit a boundary in his 30-ball tenure that fetched him 28 runs. Suresh Rainia, such a prolific scorer this season, struck one four and a six in his 20 but came up short when it mattered most. His fall in the 15th over meant that Dhoni and the others came under immense pressure and the team finished 15 to 20 runs a winning score.

The competitive score of 146 was rendered inadequate by the Pandey-Dravid partnership of 72 runs that set the stage for Virat Kohli to blast 24 runs off 17 balls (one four, two sixes) and Ross Taylor to hit 17 off 12 deliveries (two sixes) to seal Royal Challengers Bangalore’s entry into the final with six wickets and seven deliveries to spare.

The sub-plot in the match – an on-field battle between former India captain Kumble and his successor Dhoni – ran out in the veteran’s favour, with his side coming together with another stunning team performance. For all their towering performances in the 14 matches before, Dhoni’s batsmen, notably the man himself, and bowlers did not measure up on the big day.

And the irony was not lost on anyone – two teams that finished seventh and eighth last season – had stunner the more fancied sides in the semifinals to set up an incredible title clash on Sunday.