This one was billed as the clash of big-hitters, between Chris Gayle and David Warner and both rocked the Chinnaswamy Stadium in the first CLT20 semifinal on Friday.
New South Wales opener Warner got his second successive hundred in CLT20, blasting 123 not out off just 68 deliveries. But in the end Gayle's blistering 92 was what won the day for Royal Challengers Bangalore as Virat Kohli joined the party, making a quickfire 84 not not.
RCB won by six wickets to make it to the final but you can't help feel sorry for the losers.
Warner heroics
There is little you can do when the NSW Blues opener gets going. The shot he played off Raju Bhatkal, switching stance and hitting a slog sweep as though a right-hander was batting, showed the ease with which he was batting. There were other strokes too, like the ones he hammered straight off Dirk Nannes and S Aravind, but his switch hits stood out again.
Warner broke many other records. He became the first batsman to get T20 tons in two successive games, he and Daniel Smith got the best partnership in this CLT20, he became the highest six hitter in this edition.
If the fans hadn't been enthralled by Warner, Gayle and Kohli had more in store for them. Overcoming the early loss of Tillakaratne Dilshan, the Jamaican and the Delhi batsman launched an assault to leave the NSW bowlers stunned.
{{/usCountry}}If the fans hadn't been enthralled by Warner, Gayle and Kohli had more in store for them. Overcoming the early loss of Tillakaratne Dilshan, the Jamaican and the Delhi batsman launched an assault to leave the NSW bowlers stunned.
{{/usCountry}}Gayle smashed eight sixes in his 41-ball stunner while Kohli anchored the innings, hitting a 49-ball 84. The two shared a 141-run partnership and that did the NSW in. Though NSW did try to come back into the game with a few quick blows, Kohli was at hand to see them through.