Ravi Bopara scored 84 as Kings XI Punjab defeated the Bangalore Royal Challengers by seven wickets on Friday to claim their first Indian Premier League victory this season.
Former England captain Kevin Pietersen was out for a duck as Bangalore made 168-9 in their 20 overs at Kingsmead and Punjab reached 173-3 with an over to spare in perfect conditions. Despite failing to score for the second match in succession, Pietersen remained optimistic about Bangalore’s chances in the tournament.
“It’s a long competition, if you win the next nine games then you’re OK,” Pietersen said. “We just need to get winning, it’s a habit and as soon as you start winning everything starts to become OK. It’s not nice losing, but we’ve got to try and turn it around now come Sunday.”
England batsman Bopara struck five sixes and four fours during a 59-ball spell at the crease and skipper Yuvraj Singh (30 not out) and Sri Lanka’s Kumar Sangakkara (26) offered good support.
Punjab, losers of two rain-affected games since the IPL extravaganza began last weekend, had 52 runs on the board before losing their first wicket and reached 80-1 by the 10-over “strategy break.”
Pietersen deployed seven bowlers, including himself, South Africa’s Jacques Kallis and India’s Anil Kumble, but they could not stem the Punjab run flow before a large crowd in the Indian Ocean city.
Kings scored 19 runs off the 16th over to swing the game decisively in their favor and when the Royals finally got rid of Bopara, caught by New Zealand’s Jesse Ryder off the bowling of Kallis, it was far too late. Only veteran Kumble (1-19) impressed with the ball for a Bangalore team suffering their third loss in four games as one-wicket Kallis conceded 51 runs in four overs.
Kallis fared much better with the bat, top scoring for the Royals with a 62 that included two sixes and five fours. New Zealand’s Ross Taylor contributed 35 and compatriot Ryder got among the runs with a brisk 32 after two ducks. Little known South African Yusuf Abdulla (4-31) and Irfan Pathan (3-35) took the bowling honors for Punjab, who were watched by co-owner and Bollywood star Preity Zinta.
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