Punjab in Challengers' court

When Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Virat Kohli asked Kings XI Punjab to take first strike, the visiting captain George Bailey readily grabbed the offer with both hands. What transpired in the next 90 minutes of play turned out to be more than absorbing.

Kings XI made merry at Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday night, piling up 198/8. Under pressure to score at nearly 10 an over, Royal Challengers had the wherewithal to reach it. In Chris Gayle, Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers besides Parthiv Patel, Yuvraj Singh and Albie Morkel, they have the big hitters to take them home.

But not when young swing bowler Sandeep Sharma takes two wickets in two deliveries and his victims are Gayle for four and Kohli for first-ball duck yet again. Half the match was won when RCB lost two for eight runs in the third over. Eventually, Kings XI were victors by 32 runs and boosted their Net Run Rate manifold while also staying perched on top. Sharma finished with a super cool figures of 3/25.

Earlier, Glenn Maxwell posted only 25 from 11 deliveries. But it set up the momentum for David Miller to play the hurricane innings.