BENGALURU: Rajat Patidar's attacking fifty and inspired bowling set up Royal Challengers Bengaluru's fifth straight win to improve their IPL play-off hopes with a 47-run thrashing of Delhi Capitals on Sunday.
Bengaluru posted 187-9 after Cameron Green hit an unbeaten 24-ball 32 and bowlers then combined to bowl out Delhi for 140 in 19.1 overs at their home M. Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Bengaluru, who moved to fifth, have mounted a late charge to make the play-offs but will need to win their last league match and other results to go in their favour to be in the top four.
Delhi slipped to sixth and go into their final match with 12 points. Bengaluru have also 12 points from 13 matches, but boast a better run-rate.
"Brilliant, we put in some good performances and I'm really pleased. It's just confidence," Bengaluru skipper Faf du Plessis said.
"First half of the season, things didn't quite come together and from that batting perspective and bowling perspective we have been able to put it together now."
In the first match of the day, skipper Ruturaj Gaikwad led holders Chennai Super Kings to a five-wicket win over Rajasthan Royals and boost their play-off hopes.
Chennai moved to 14 points and third place with seven wins in 13 matches.
Rajasthan remain second in the 10-team table led by Kolkata Knight Riders, who are the only team to have already qualified for the next stage.
The top four teams will make the play-offs with the final on May 26 in Chennai.
In match two, star batsman Virat Kohli took charge after he smashed 27 off 13 balls to lay the foundation of Bengaluru's total in a match where Delhi missed skipper Rishabh Pant, who was suspended after a slow over-rate offence.
Kohli remains the leading batsman this season with 661 runs including one century and five half-tons.
Patidar, who hit 52, soon took control in a 88-run stand with England batsman Will Jacks, who smashed 41, before a late charge by Green.
Delhi faltered in their chase after they lost David Warner for one off left-arm spinner Swapnil Singh.
Left-arm quick Yash Dayal took down Abishek Porel and then ran out Jake Fraser-McGurk in successive balls and soon Delhi slipped to 30-4.
Stand-in-skipper Axar Patel put up a fight with his 57 off 39 balls but fell to Dayal in the 16th over and the wheels came off the chase.
Australia's Green took a wicket and ran out Tristan Stubbs to add to his batting cameo and was named player of the match for the first time this season.
"When your main players are run out and you lose four in powerplay, you're chasing the game," said Patel. "Anything can happen (in the race to the play-offs), but we haven't thought that far ahead."
In the earlier match, five-time champions Chennai restricted Rajasthan to 141-5, a total they overhauled with 10 balls to spare in their last home game at MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Gaikwad anchored Chennai's tricky chase as they lost wickets at regular intervals including when Ravindra Jadeja was called out for "obstructing the field".
Jadeja was sent back by Gaikwad while attempting a second run and he changed direction on the pitch when the throw from wicketkeeper Sanju Samson hit his hand and the third umpire ruled him out after an appeal from the opposition.
Gaikwad kept his cool and put on an unbeaten 24-run stand with impact substitute Sameer Rizvi, who hit the winning boundary.
Bengaluru win five in row to keep IPL play-off hopes alive, Chennai victorious again
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Bengaluru win five in row to keep IPL play-off hopes alive, Chennai victorious again
- Bengaluru, who moved to fifth, have mounted a late charge to make the play-offs
Wawrinka rolls back the years to beat Lebanon’s Benjamin Hassan in front of Federer
- 3-time Slam winner upped his level when required to serve his way past Hassan at Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships
- Top-ranked Arab player on the ATP Tour, Moez Echargui of Tunisia, was also in action on day 1, slipping to the narrowest of defeats to Mpetshi Perricard
DUBAI: Forty-year-old Stan Wawrinka, the three-time Grand Slam winner who is competing in his final Dubai Duty Free Tennis Championships this week, rolled back the years on Centre Court to overcome Lebanese wildcard Benjamin Hassan in straight sets and become the oldest player to win a match in the Dubai tournament’s 34-year history.
Wawrinka’s record was previously held by his Swiss compatriot, the legendary Roger Federer, so it was fitting then that the 20-time Grand Slam winner was inside the Dubai Duty Free Tennis Stadium to cheer on his fellow Olympic gold medalist.
“I’m not sure it’s the best record of his to have,” Wawrinka joked in his on-court interview as fans switched from cheering his every move to applauding an on-screen image of Federer, who won the title here eight times, including his last at the ripe old age of 37 in 2019. “(The appreciation of the fans) is one of the reasons why I have kept playing for so long — to enjoy these matches and these tournaments. I’m super grateful to all those who came out tonight.”
Wawrinka looked far from a player ready to hang up his racket as he beat Hassan 7-5, 6-3 and without dropping a single service game. That is not to say the German-born Hassan failed to put up a fight, but only that whenever he got close — and he forced three break-points across the two sets — Wawrinka seemed to go up a level. In both games where the Swiss looked like he might see his serve broken, he pulled an ace out of his bag to finish the match with nine aces overall.
“All good things have to come to an end,” Wawrinka said when asked why he is choosing to step away now when he evidently still has so much to offer. “Nobody can play forever and as much as I am passionate and still playing well, I know that it’s the right thing to do.”
Hassan, ranked World No. 289 and making his Dubai debut, revealed he was thankfully not aware of Federer’s presence until after the match, adding: “Stan played really good and was serving unbelievable. I had my chances to come back in the second set but unfortunately missed some returns. It was tough, but I’m happy with my performance. Lots of things to work on, of course, but overall, it was just a privilege to be here, to play my first match, and against Stan — it’s incredible.”
Asked in his post-match news conference whether he had taken the chance to speak with Federer at all, Hassan raised his hand in the air: “I’m never washing this hand again! He came to me and said ‘good match’ and I said ‘thank you’ in German. He looked a little bit surprised to hear that, but, yeah, I will always keep this hand dry now in the shower!”
Another Arab player was in action on day one as Tunisian Moez Echargui also made his Dubai debut, taking on France’s Giovanni Mpetshi Perricard in the first round. In a match of the finest margins, Echargui — the highest-ranked Arab on tour at 141, yet ranked 83 places below his opponent — forced three tiebreaks before Mpetshi Perricard edged the final set to progress 7-6 (3), 6-7 (3), 7-6 (4).
Having made his ATP 500 debut last week in Doha, this month is proving eye-opening for the 33-year-old North African as he embraces the experience of playing in such high-profile events. Echargui and his coaches are using the new opportunities afforded to him as a wildcard to improve and learn as much as possible against the world’s best players.
“Going on Centre Court and playing against top players, it is where we want to be, playing in these big tournaments, in front of these big crowds”, said Echargui, whose next stop is Indian Wells next week. “Despite the result, I’m feeling really positive about it. I knew the match would be a hard one, so I just tried to stay focused all of the way through. I’m proud to represent my country and to represent all of the Arab world, especially here in Dubai. It’s such a privilege. It’s been fulfilling — a great experience.”
