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Mohali, April 13
Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers sensational half-centuries overshadowed Chris Gayle’s unbeaten 99 as Royal Challengers finally snapped a six-match losing streak this IPL season with an eight-wicket win over Kings XI Punjab.
Kohli (67) in company of AB de Villiers (59*) scripted a superb run-chase, sharing an 85-run stand to lay the foundation for victory. Kohli blasted eight boundaries, while de Villiers clobbered two sixes and five boundaries in his 38-ball innings.
Batting first, dashing West Indies opener Chris Gayle (99) carried his bat through with an unbeaten 99, studded with five sixes and 10 hits to the fence, to single-handedly anchor Punjab to 173/4.
Kohli and de Villiers did bulk of the scoring and once the skipper was dismissed in the 16th over, Marcus Stoinis (28) played a cameo to take the team home with four balls to spare.
Great feeling
Kohli said, “Great feeling to get across the line. Couple of games we should have closed out before this. After so many setbacks, the guys had desire — that’s one word we spoke about. We thought 190 was par, and to restrict them to 170 was a good effort. To pick up four wickets in eight overs in the middle was a good effort.” — PTI/TNS