Ross Taylor's unbeaten knock of 81 runs from just 33 balls helped Bangalore Royal Challengers to beat Kolkata Knight Riders by six wickets in Centurion on Tuesday (May 12). Taylor smashed 5 massive sixes and 7 fours to guide his team to victory in 19.2 overs. Earlier Kolkata Knight Riders scored a total of 173 in 20 overs after being sent to bat first by Royal Challengers skipper Anil Kumble. Brendon McCullum led the Riders from the front by scoring unbeaten 84 runs from 64 deliveries. McCullum hit 2 sixes and 10 fours. He was well supported by David Hussey (43 off 27).

 

Chasing such a challenging target, Royal Challengers began their innings on a positive note as both Jacques Kallis and Jesse Ryder played some exquisite shots. Kallis scored 32 off 34, hitting 4 fours and one six  whereas Ryder hit 3 fours in his 22-run knock that came off 20 balls.  After the arrival of Ross Taylor, runs started to flow more rapidly. The Kiwi batsman was excellent in his shot selection and reached his half century in just 24 deliveries. Taylor and Mark Boucher (13) put on to a partnership of 54 runs for the fifth wicket that helped Royal Challengers to achieve the target of 174 with 4 balls to spare.