Durban, April 25 (Inditop) Kings XI Punjab skipper Yuvraj Singh was a relieved man after his team finally managed its first win in the second edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), beating Bangalore Royal Challengers by seven wickets at the Newlands here Friday.
On the past two occasions, rain denied Kings XI, last year’s semi-finalists, of a win and Friday it was the brilliance of Ravi Bopara (84) that helped them get first points in the league. For Royal Challengers, it was their third successive loss in four matches.
“Thank God no rain! 169 was a fair total to chase and the wicket was good. Ravi was outstanding and he kept the momentum. All our experiments worked,” Yuvraj said.
Man of the Match Bopara said that the plan was to keep wickets in hand and avoid taking chances against veteran leg spinner Anil Kumble, who finished with figures of 1-19 in four overs.
“We decided not to lose a wicket to Kumble so it was just a question of slamming it at the end. The ball was skidding through,” he said.
Royal Challengers’ skipper Kevin Pietersen rued the dropped catches that gave Kings XI the victory.
“When you drop some you make it hard for yourself. It’s not nice losing and we’ll try and turn it around. My little team-mate from England Bopara played like a super star,” he said.
rounak