Delhi crush Kolkata and regain top spot

The Delhi Daredevils bowlers paved the way for a seven-wicket Indian Premier League thumping of strugglers Kolkata Knight Riders Sunday as they reclaimed top spot in the table.
Kolkata were restricted to 123-8 at chilly Wanderers after they lost the toss and were sent in to bat and Delhi cruised home, reaching 125-3 with 17 balls to spare.
Openers David Warner, who made 36 off 23 balls, and 18-run Gautam Gambhir got Delhi off to a good start in the chase with a 53-run first-wicket partnership.
While Gambhir, Warner and Tillakaratne Dilshan were removed within three overs, South African AB de Villiers and Dinesh Karthik combined to carry them home.
The pair put on an unbroken 56 runs for the fourth wicket with De Villiers making 40 from 32 deliveries and Karthik contributing 17.
Earlier, Ashish Nehra had struck twice in Kolkata?s first over, and in the second Australian Dirk Nannes removed South African Morne van Wyk to leave them struggling at 9-3.
Opener Sourav Ganguly and Yashpal Singh forged a 36-run partnership for the fourth wicket, but Amit Mishra sent Singh packing in the eighth over and three balls later added the wicket of Wriddhiman Saha to break Kolkata?s momentum.
Ganguly, who made 44 runs off 45 balls, stuck around to anchor the innings, but was removed by Nannes in the 17th over.
Ajit Agarkar, dropped by Rajat Ghatia off his own bowling on 21, contributed 39 off 29 deliveries.
He was removed with the last ball of the innings after sharing a stubborn 40-run stand with Murali Kartik.
Mishra was the pick of the Delhi attack, returning 3-14 while Nannes and Nehra claimed two wickets each.

Gambhir half century takes Delhi to the top

A half-century from stand-in skipper Gautam Gambhir led Delhi Daredevils to the top of the Indian Premier League table with a nine-wicket win over Kolkata Knight Riders on Tuesday.
Gambhir's measured innings of 71 not out eased Delhi to their target of 155 with one over to spare, although he did enjoy some luck after being dropped by Kolkata captain Brendon McCullum on 21 and was given not out after being caught behind just short of his half-century.
David Warner's quickfire innings of 36 from 23 deliveries got the Daredevils off to a flying start and eased the pressure on his team-mates, allowing Gambhir and Tillakaratne Dilshan (42 not out) to ride home.
Gambhir has struggled for IPL form, but was pleased to finally register a good innings.
"I am not spotting the ball well, but was happy I batted through," he said. "We discussed that someone had to finish the job, and with two batsmen set we managed to do that."
It was Kolkata's seventh loss from nine matches, and they rued some poor fielding with a number of dropped catches and unnecessary boundaries after their batsmen set a reasonable total.
McCullum finally found form to record a speedy 35, but it was fellow opener Morne van Wyk who really sparkled with 74 from just 48 balls.
The South African hit 11 fours, but was at times starved of the strike by a struggling middle order as the innings tailed away and ended with a total that was a shade under par.
"I thought probably another 20 on top would have been good, but the way they chased them down was thoroughly professional," conceded McCullum.
Defeat leaves Kolkata rooted to the bottom of the table with just three points.

Jayawardene leads Punjab to last-over IPL win

Mahela Jayawardene struck an unbeaten 52 to guide Kings XI Punjab to a nail-biting six-wicket victory over Kolkata Knight Riders in the Indian Premier League here on Sunday.
The Sri Lankan batsman hit seven fours in his 41-ball knock as Punjab surpassed Kolkata's competitive 153-3 in a last-ball finish at St. George's Park.
Needing seven from the final over by Kolkata paceman Ajit Agarkar, Jayawardene hit a four while Irfan Pathan (19 not out) fetched the winning runs for Punjab.
The victory helped Punjab climb to the second position in the points table while the struggling Kolkata continued to languish at the bottom with their sixth defeat from eight matches.
The Yuvraj Singh-led Punjab have now won four of their seven matches in this Twenty20 competition.
Punjab were off to a disappointing start with Ishant Sharma claiming Kumar Sangakkara for a duck in the first over but a slew of dropped catches and poor fielding did Kolkata no favours.
Simon Katich (34) was dropped on five by Chris Gayle while debutant Sunny Sohal also thrived on a grassed chance to make a fine 26-ball 25 on debut.
Kolkata's innings was built around Brad Hodge who top-scored with an unbeaten 70 off just 43 balls and shared key partnerships with Sourav Ganguly (22) and Morne van Wyk (18 not out).
The Australian smashed 10 fours and a six in a late assault that saw Kolkata put on 101 runs in their last 10 overs.
Leg-spinner Piyush Chawla was the most successful bowler with 2-27 from four overs.

South Africans excel in last-over thrillers

South African seamer Yusuf Abdulla and batsman Mark Boucher held their nerve under pressure in last-over finishes in the Indian Premier League here on Wednesday.
Bangalore Royal Challengers needed 10 runs in the last over to achieve a 140-run target against Kolkata Knight Riders before Boucher smashed spinner Chris Gayle's penultimate delivery for a winning four.
Wicket-keeper Boucher was named man of the match for his unbeaten 25 off 13 balls in Bangalore's five-wicket victory.
Kings XI Punjab owed their three-run win over Mumbai Indians to Abdulla, who bowled an eight-run last over when the opposition required 12 to win. Mumbai were restricted to 116-7 in reply to Punjab's 119-8.
Abdulla ensured Punjab's win in the final over when he dismissed well-set Jean-Paul Duminy, caught in the deep after making a responsible 63-ball 59 -- the day's only half-century.
Deccan Chargers currently lead the eight-team tournament with eights points from four matches, followed by Punjab (6/5), Delhi (6/4), Mumbai (5/5), Rajasthan (5/5), Bangalore (4/6), Chennai (3/5) and Kolkata (3/6).
Mumbai were struggling at 45-4 in the 10th over before South African Duminy sustained his team's hopes with a solid knock containing four boundaries.
Punjab seized the early initiative through pacemen Irfan Pathan, Vikramjeet Malik and Abdulla, who grabbed three of the first four wickets, including those of hard-hitting openers Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya.
Jayasuriya fell for a duck in the opening over, caught by skipper Yuvraj Singh in the slips off Pathan. Skipper Tendulkar contributed just one before cutting Malik to Mahela Jayawardene at point.
Punjab earlier failed to build a partnership against a disciplined Mumbai attack, with Sri Lankan wicket-keeper Kumar Sangakkara alone offering stiff resistance with an unbeaten 45 off 44 balls.
Teenager Shreevats Goswami also played a big role in Bangalore's victory, top-scoring with 43. The 19-year-old opener hit six fours in his 46-ball knock.
Australian spinner Brad Hodge put pressure on Bangalore with three wickets, but Boucher batted sensibly in the crucial last over to steer his team home.
Bangalore skipper Kevin Pietersen used his spinners intelligently to restrict Kolkata to a modest total. Indian leg-spinner Anil Kumble was the most successful bowler with 2-16 off four overs. South African Morne van Wyk top-scored for Kolkata with 43 not out.
Part-time off-spinner Pietersen himself bowled the opening over and struck with his first delivery, having hard-hitting New Zealand batsman Brendon McCullum caught by Virat Kohli at point.
Kumble was pressed into the attack early in the innings and got a wicket in his opening over when he trapped Hodge (17) leg-before before accounting for Wriddhiman Saha (21).
Left-arm spinner Prabhu Appanna claimed a big wicket when he had West Indies skipper Gayle caught in the deep. Gayle, batting with a runner due to leg cramps in the later part of his innings, hit a 37-ball 40.

Tendulkar, Jayasuriya win it for Mumbai

Senior pros Sachin Tendulkar and Sanath Jayasuriya produced vintage strokeplay to give Mumbai Indians a key victory in the Indian Premier League here on Monday.
The ageing duo hammered 127 for the first wicket from just 12.2 overs as Mumbai scored 187-6 in 20 overs after electing to take first strike and then bowled out Kolkata Knight Riders for 95 in 15.2 overs.
The massive 92-run victory took Mumbai's tally to five points from four matches, putting them in third place behind leaders Deccan Chargers (eight points) and Delhi Daredevils (six).
Bollywood star Shahrukh Khan's Knight Riders were left tottering on three points from five games and needed to win a majority of their remaining nine matches to stay in contention for the semi-finals.
Tendulkar, the world's leading Test and one-day batsman who has voluntarily opted out of India's Twenty20 squad, smashed a brilliant 68 off 45 balls.
The prolific 36-year-old hit six boundaries and four sixes, one of them against Sri Lankan spinner Ajantha Mendis that landed outside the St George's Park stadium.
Jayasuriya, who turns 40 in June, hammered 52 off 32 balls with two fours and four sixes as the veterans turned the clock back in a breathtaking display of attacking batting.
Kolkata's chase faltered early when skipper Brendon McCullum was dismissed by Lasith Malinga in the second over and West Indian captain Chris Gayle fell to team-mate Dwayne Bravo in the third.
Brad Hodge (24) and Sourav Ganguly (34) were the chief contributors to Kolkata's meagre total as Lasith Malinga and Abhishek Nayar scalped three wickets each.

Punjab blown away by Kolkata Gayle

Chris Gayle hammered an explosive 44 not out to power Kolkata Knight Riders to an 11-run victory over Kings XI Punjab in a rain-hit Indian Premier League match on Tuesday.
The West Indies skipper smashed four sixes in his 26-ball knock as Kolkata raced to 79-1 off 9.2 overs in reply to their opponents' 20-over total of 158-6 when the game was called off due to rain.
Kolkata, who were 11 runs ahead on the Duckworth-Lewis method, posted their first win in two games. Punjab have lost both of their matches.
Left-handed Gayle put his team on course for victory when he put on 57 off just 33 balls for the opening wicket with New Zealander Brendon McCullum, who cracked two sixes in his 16-ball 21.
Punjab paid dearly for letting off Gayle early in the innings, with Karan Goel dropping an easy catch at mid-wicket off South African left-arm seamer Yusuf Abdulla.
Yuvraj Singh and Kumar Sangakkara (26) helped Punjab post a respectable total with a 56-run stand for the fourth wicket after a double-strike from Kolkata seamer Sourav Ganguly.
Skipper Yuvraj, who smashed six sixes in an over at this venue against England in the Twenty20 World Championships in 2007, top-scored with a 28-ball 38 with the help of two sixes.
Former India captain Ganguly ended Punjab's early flourish with two wickets in his opening over, having pinch-hitter Irfan Pathan (32) caught at deep mid-wicket and removing Ravi Bopara (15) caught behind.
Yuvraj and Sangakkara then steadied the innings before Mahela Jayawardene cracked a 19-ball 31 not out to help his team cross the 150-mark.

Singh grabs four in Deccan Chargers victory

Fast bowler RP Singh took four wickets as the Deccan Chargers gained a comfortable eight-wicket win over the Kolkata Knight Riders in their Indian Premier League crown at Newlands Sunday.
Singh took four for 22 as Kolkata struggled to 101 all out on a lively pitch.
The Chargers needed only 13.1 overs to clinch their win, with Herschelle Gibbs hitting 43 not out and Rohit Sharma 36 not out.
It was an encouraging performance by the Deccan side, who finished last of the eight teams in 2008.
"It's a good start," said Gibbs. "We've got a new captain, a new manager and some new ideas. The team spirit is really good."
With new captain Adam Gilchrist at the helm and former Australian batsman Darren Lehmann as coach, the Chargers kept the Knight Riders under pressure almost from the time Kolkata captain Brendon McCullum won the toss and decided to bat.
McCullum was out early, caught down the leg side off Singh, and Chris Gayle followed soon afterwards, hitting Singh for a four and a six before holing out to deep mid-off.
While Singh took the wickets, West Indian fast bowler Fidel Edwards conceded only two runs in a remarkable opening spell of three overs.
Australian Brad Hodge was the only Kolkata batsman to shine, hitting 31 before falling to a stunning reflex catch by Gibbs at backward point off Scott Styris.
Left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha took two for 14 in four accurate overs before Singh came back to finish off the tail.
Gilchrist and Gibbs gave Deccan a fast start, putting on 24 in 2.5 overs before Gilchrist was caught for 14.
VVS Laxman was run out for 10 but Gibbs and Sharma saw their team through in an unbeaten stand of 69.