IPL: Starc stars, Gayle belts Johnson in RCB win

Peter Hanson

IPL: Starc stars, Gayle belts Johnson in RCB win image

Chris Gayle smashed an electric 117 as Royal Challengers Bangalore battered Kings XI Punjab by 138 runs in the Indian Premier League.

The West Indies star dazzled the crowd with an array of entertaining batting, his knock featuring 12 sixes and seven fours from just 57 balls and taking him past 1,500 runs scored at the Chinnaswamy Stadium - the most one player has scored at a single venue.

Axar Patel ended Gayle's superb innings in the 17th over, but AB de Villiers was also in the mood to swing the bat and his 47 off 24 balls steered Bangalore to a hefty 226-3.

Kings XI's reply was shambolic. Just two players reached double figures, as Sreenath Aravind (4-27) brilliantly tore through the middle order.

Rock-bottom Punjab were eventually skittled for a meagre 88 - of which Patel scored 40 - as Bangalore completed one of the most one-sided victories in IPL history.

Mitchell Johnson was the first Punjab bowler to be left toiling by Gayle. The Australian seamer was hit for 20 runs in his first over - the most he has conceded in an IPL over.

Back-to-back sixes in the 10th over took Gayle's partnership with Virat Kohli (32) past the 100 mark, and he followed up in the next over with a 100-metre maximum that hit the top of the stadium and was caught one handed by Glenn Maxwell, who cheekily claimed the dismissal.

Sandeep Sharma's yorker spelled the end of Kohli and the 119-run stand with Gayle, but the latter brought up his 14th IPL hundred with a neat flick off down fine leg for four. 

Gayle marked the achievement by paying homage to Cristiano Ronaldo, copying the Real Madrid star's famous goal celebration and letting out a huge roar in jubilation.

Keen to get in on the act, De Villiers hit three straight sixes off Karanveer Singh in the 15th over, shortly before Gayle was given a huge ovation when he was caught and bowled by Patel.

From there it was a procession. Manan Vohra (2) and Murali Vijay (2) were dismissed in the first two overs of Kings XI's chase.

Aravind then came to the fore with a stunning spell, the pace of his deliveries proving too much for Maxwell (1), Wriddhiman Saha (13), David Miller (7) and George Bailey (2).

Mitchell Starc (4-15) then swept up the tail, Patel's 40 off 21 a rare highlight for Kings XI as the Challengers completed a resounding victory.

Peter Hanson