Suresh Raina’s half-century helped Chennai Super Kings book their place in the IPL final with a six-wicket win over Royal Challengers Bangalore in Mumbai.
Chasing 176, Raina cracked 73 not out off 50 balls to lead Chennai’s recovery from seven for two, stringing together two 60-plus partnerships with Subramaniam Badrinath (34) and skipper MS Dhoni (29).
Raina and Albie Morkel then provided the late heroics, scoring 46 in 18 balls as the unlikely victory came in the final over.
Earlier, Virat Kohli was the star for Bangalore, smashing an unbeaten 70 off just 44 deliveries while Mayank Agarwal (34) and Luke Pomersbach (29) gave ample support.
Bangalore now face the winners of tomorrow’s clash between Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders for another shot at a final berth.
Chris Gayle, whose batting had helped Bangalore top the league, disappointed on the night, out for just eight, but the total chugged along nicely thanks to Agarwal.
Kohli joined in for a 48-run stand with Pomersbach (29 off 18 balls) and also led the late assault to help Bangalore rack up 40 off the final three overs.
Chennai started poorly, losing their openers with just seven on the board as Bangalore’s tight bowling kept the pressure up, but Raina and Badrinath eventually found their scoring shots, reaching 62 in 10 overs.
Badrinath fell to Abhimanyu Mithun while Raina hit six sixes en route to his 50 to keep Chennai’s hopes alive alongside Dhoni.
Zaheer Khan then had Dhoni caught for his second wicket but Raina and Morkel piled on the big shots.
It came down to the final over, bowled by Bangalore captain Daniel Vettori with 12 needed, but Morkel finished things off in style for Chennai with a four and a six to finish 28 not out from only 10 balls.
It’s the first qualifier of the playoffs in the Indian T20 League and it doesn’t get bigger than this. Bangalore have finished on the top of the table with 19 points as they beat Chennai in their previous match.
The men in yellow would be definitely looking for revenge as they enter this all important game. The winner of this game will head to the final straightaway whereas the loser will get another chance to qualify, by playing against the winner of the first eliminator between Mumbai and Kolkata.
The match will be played at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai.