Kolkata: Skipper Gautam Gambhir led from front with a rollicking 93 as Kolkata Knight Riders thrashed Royal Challengers Bangalore by 47 runs in their Indian Premier League match, here today.
Gambhir bulldozed the Bangalore bowling with his blazing 51-ball knock as Kolkata posted an imposing 190 for four, their highest total of the season, and then restricted Bangalore to 143 for six. Apart from Gambhir, Brendon McCullum (43 off 37) and Jacques Kallis (41 off 27) contributed in their huge score. Gambhir played some breath-taking shots in his innings, which was studded with five huge sixes and nine fours.
Bangalore wilted under pressure of big chase and lost three top-order batsman inside six overs. They just played a catch job from there on with Chris Gayle holding one end.
Gayle was top scorer for Bangalore with his 86 off 58 balls but his fiery knock came too late. His knock was adorned with six sixes and seven fours.
Had fellow West Indian Sunil Narine not dropped Gayle in the third over, the visitors could have suffered worse defeat. Gayle was on 12 at that time.
With this win Kolkata stay on second position in the points table behind Delhi Daredevils but now have 11 points, two better than Chennai Super Kings and RCB. Bangalore needed a good start by they lost Tillakaratane Dilshan (1), Virat Kohli (18) and AB de villiers (0) in a hurry and were ousted from the game.
Earlier, everything went right for Kolkata, from winning the toss to a good start and then a good finish.
Gambhir and Brendon McCullum put on 95 runs for the opening wicket, their highest first-wicket stand of the season, to lay foundation of a big score. (PTI)
