Kings XI Punjab beats RCB by eight wickets

NEW DELHI, April 11: Kings XI Punjab overcame a stunning late assault from AB de Villiers in a clinical faishon to beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by eight wickets in Indore on Monday. Hashim Amla scored an unbeaten 58 while skipper Glenn Maxwell scored a 22-ball 43 to seal the chase of 149 in 14.3 overs.

That KXIP were left to chase 149 was thanks to a one-man show from AB de Villiers who recovered from a back spasm to play a blinder of an innings in his first IPL match of the season.

He clattered three fours and nine sixes in an unbeaten 89 to singlehandedly push his team to a competitive 148/4 after RCB won the toss and opted to bat first. They found themselves struggling from the first over itself when they lost captain Shane Watson and at one stage they were 71/4 in 15 overs but thanks to De Villiers, they recovered.

However, the target never looked imposing for KXIP who recorded their 11th victory in 19 meetings against RCB.