Rohit Sharma led a well-planned run chase as Deccan Chargers defeated Kings XI Punjab by five wickets to stay in the hunt for a semifinal berth in the DLF IPL III.
The game at the HPCA Stadium here on Friday was a must-win match for the Chargers and it achieved the winning target in 19.1 overs to move up to the fourth position in the table with 14 points in its kitty.
Chargers skipper Adam Gilchrist asked the ‘home' side to bat after winning the toss. Kumar Sangakkara (52), continuing with his good form, scored off bad balls and helped Kings maintain a healthy run rate after Shaun Marsh's early exit.
The Lankan took some calculated risks in his nine hits to the fence and one over it. Soon after reaching his half-century, Sangakkara tried to reverse sweep leg-spinner Rahul Sharma and paid the price. He put on 86 runs for the second wicket with Mahela Jayawardene.
Early in his innings, Jayawardene found it difficult to read the ball off the pitch and also had some close shaves while dealing with the bouncers. The opener struggled against the slower bowlers too and got a ‘life' on 21 when Rahul Sharma, posted at short fine-leg, could not hold on to a difficult chance off Pragyan Ojha.
Source : http://beta.thehindu.com/sport/cricket/article399429.ece
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