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AB masterclass puts RCB into final

South Africa superstar steers Bangalore through tricky run-chase with unbeaten 79 to be first team into the IPL final

Match in a tweet: Kulkarni rips the RCB top order to shreds but AB de Villiers snatches victory from jaws of defeat to take Bangalore into the final.

The result: Gujarat Lions 158 (20) lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore 6-159 (18.2) by four wickets with 10 balls remaining.

The hero:  If Virat Kohli doesn't get you AB de Villiers will. Chasing 159 Bangalore found themselves in dire straits at 5-29. That situation soon worsened to 6-68. But with de Villiers at the crease no mission is impossible. The South African, rallied with tail to remain unbeaten on 79 from 45 balls to orchestrate a perfect chase. 'Mr 360' as some call him seems to find a way to – or over – the boundary with the paddle scoops, inside-out drives and reverse sweeps along with the conventional shots. De Villiers picked the right ball and the right bowler to smash five towering sixes and five fours as he brought the required run-rate down from 9.5 an over to a run-a-ball in matter of a few overs.  De Villiers scored 51 in a match-turning 91-run partnership with Iqbal Abdulla to guide the Royal Challengers to victory with 10 balls to spare.

The support cast: Abdulla was instrumental with the ball and bat. With Gujarat sent in, Abdulla bowled the second over and his left-arm spin removed first Brendon McCullum and Aaron Finch in his first three ball. He finished with 2-38. More importantly, it was his gritty 33 from 25 balls batting at No.8 that was the perfect foil to de Villiers as he masterminded the chase. Abdulla capped off his brilliant night by hitting the winning runs.

The consolation effort: Dwayne Smith has been mighty impressive with the ball of late but here he was back to the hard-hitting batsman. Walking in at 3-9, Smith quickly hit consecutive boundaries to break the shackles. If a bowler tossed it up Smith backed his instincts and hit straight, clearing the ropes four times. When the Lions reached 100, Smith had 65 of them. On a tacky surface offering the spinners grip Smith was ruthless, hammering slow bowlers for 51 from 23 balls. He fell for 73 from 40 balls but he at least had given the Lions a score they could defend. 

The Aussie pack: Shane Watson was tight, frugal and intelligent with his bowling and after picking up four wickets in this match holds the IPL's Purple Cap as the leading wicket-taker with 20 scalps. As befitting an experienced veteran, Watson consistently hit the right lengths and executed his plans. Watto set the tone with his first over, picking up the crucial wicket of Gujarat skipper Suresh Raina and conceding a lone single. Then asked to bowl at the death over, he was smacked for two sixes but responded with two wickets in two balls. His four-over return of 4-29 included a remarkable 13 dot balls.

Image Id: ~/media/3268BBB6597746CF924A304EBA339507 Image Caption: Shane Watson celebrates the win by donning the IPL's Purple Cap // BCCI

It was a completely different night for Aaron Finch. His one boundary came from the outside edge and was nearly caught. The very next ball was caught, Finch gone for four and he had little impact on the match in the field.

The stat: AB de Villiers underlined his greatness in the game by passing the 25,000 career runs mark across all formats of the game.

The spell: What a new ball burst from DK! Not the Aussie legend but the Gujarat seamer, Dhawal Kulkarni. At times this year it has seemed impossible to get Virat Kohli out, but not here. It took Kulkarni only two balls to knock over the Royal Challengers captain. In his next over, he comprehensively bowled Chris Gayle and then got KL Rahul to edge his out-swinger to slip, first ball.  The hat-trick eluded him but Kulkarni had a fourth wicket when Sachin Baby spooned an easy catch to cover.  Bowling his full quota out to open the innings, Kulkarni finished with new career-best 4-14.

The captaincy: Virat Kohli is one emotive figure. From slapping the ground in disgust at a misfield to refusing to take his pads off for the duration of the run chase despite his second-ball duck, he is a magnet for the TV cameras. His batting form eluded him in this match, but his captaincy was as proficient as ever. The skipper instructed his wicketkeeper to stand up to stumps even to his fast bowlers to stop Brendon McCullum jumping out of the crease from the outset. Sensing McCullum's desire to attack, he introduced a left-arm spinner and put long-off on the fence, daring the Kiwi to go over the top. Abdullah obliged with some turn and McCullum hit it straight down long-off's throat.  With the left-handed Suresh Raina at the crease, he brought on Watson. After five dot balls Kohli pushed square-leg back to the fence and brought up fine-leg. Watson backed up the plan by bowling a perfect bouncer that Raina hit straight to man who'd just moved up. Whether they were his plans or team strategy only the RCB players and staff will know, but Kohli's execution, field placings and read on the game were pivotal.

The wash-up:  Royal Challengers advance directly to Sunday's IPL final, where they await to see who their opponents will be as the two remaining eliminators unfold. Gujarat now head to Delhi where they will play the winner of tonight's first eliminator between David Warner's Sunrisers Hyderabad and the Kolkata Knight Riders.