Chris Gayle and KL Rahul put together their third straight fifty partnership as Kings XI Punjab outplayed Kolkata Knight Riders by nine wickets under the Duckworth/Lewis method to move to the top of the IPL table on Saturday.
AB de Villiers also cracked 90 to lead Royal Challengers Bangalore to victory over Delhi Daredevils.
In Kolkata, the home franchise batted first and put up 191-7 with Chris Lynn smashing 74 off 41. Dinesh Karthik made 43 off 28 and Robin Uthappa 34 off 23.
Gayle and Rahul then ransacked 73 in the Powerplay before a 90-minute rain delay saw a reduction in the target to 125 in 13 overs. The pair continued to dominate upon resumption, stretching their partnership to 116 in 9.4 overs when Rahul fell for 60 in 27 (9x4s, 2x6s).
Gayle ended on 62 off 38 (5x4s, 6x6s), and now has 229 runs in three innings this season, and has only been dismissed once. Kings XI got to the target in 11.1 overs.
In Bengaluru, RCB won by six wickets with 12 balls to spare after being set 175 by Daredevils. De Villiers cracked 90 not out off 39 balls (10x4s, 5x6s) to lead the chase.
Rishabh Pant’s 85 off 48 (6x6s, 7x6s) and Shreyas Iyer’s 52 off 31 (4x4s, 3x6s) accounted for the bulk of Daredevils runs.
The IPL continues on Sunday with Sunrisers Hyderabad and Chennai Super Kings clashing at 06:30h and Rajasthan Royals and Mumbai Indians facing off at 10:30h.
Editor’s note: Follow the matches live on E2, the exclusive local broadcaster for IPL 2018.
