De Kock heroics help Daredevils thrash Royal Challengers

Riding on opener Quinton De Kock's heroics, Delhi Daredevils (DD) on Sunday defeated the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the group stage match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Chinnaswami Stadium here.

Leading the run chase for the visitors, De Kock hit a superbly-crafted century (108 of 51 balls), first century in IPL 9, with 15 fours and three sixes to guide his team to win the match by seven wickets in 19.1 overs.

The South African southpaw was a beauty to watch and a virtuoso in action with his boundaries zooming all over the ground, especially his masterclass off-side shots.

From an asking rate of 87 runs in 48 balls after 12 overs, the going got so easy that DD only needed 21 runs in 26 balls by the 17th over and just one run off the final six balls.

Karun Nair, unbeaten at 54 off 42 balls with six fours and one six, stood by De Kock to see the victory in the 20th over.

Though DD started off their chase of 192 runs shakily, losing Shreyas Iyer (0) and Sanju Samson (9) early, the win was comprehensive and facile.

David Wiese took a spectacular catch to get rid of Iyer in the first over off S. Aravind, but from then on there was no looking back for DD, with De Kock and Nair in action.

Nair reached his half century in the 17th over off 37 balls with six fours and a sixer.

Shane Watson emerged the most successful bowler for RCB, claiming two wickets for 25 runs in his quota of four overs while Sreenath Aravind was the only other bowler 1/32 to claim a wicket.

Earlier, after winning the toss, DD captain Zaheer Khan chose to filed first and put the home team to bat.

Captain Virat Kohli, with a fighting 79 off 48 balls, was the chief architect of RCB's 191/5 in 20 overs.

Steadying the ship after losing swashbuckling Chris Gayle for a duck, Kohli was joined by mercurial A.B. De Villiers to build the innings.

Gayle, who opened the innings, virtually threw his wicket, offering a simple catch to J. P. Duminy off Zaheer Khan in the first over.

Succeeding him, De Villiers smashed two back-to-back fours to complete the first over, and proved his credentials to be a vital cog in the team by hitting 55, off 33 balls, garnished with nine fours and a six.

Like an one day international match, Kohli and De Villiers stole quick singles during the match to build a partnership of 107 runs, before the latter was caught by Mohammed Shami off Carlos Brathwaite.

Shane Watson, who came in next, scored a fast-paced 33 (off 18 balls) before he was caught by Chris Morris off Shami in the 17th over while attempting a huge shot.

Sarfraz Khan (1) however failed to recreate the scoop and back shots magic of RCB's first match against Sunrisers Hyderabad as he was run out by Shami with a superb piece of fielding off his bowling.

Shami took two wickets for an economical 34 runs while Zaheer Khan and Brathwaite claimed a wicket each.

DD points tally rose to four with the latest victory, two wins in three matches, while Royal Challengers continue with points with a win and a loss after two matches.

Brief Scores: Delhi Daredevils 192/2 (Quinton De Cock 108, Karun Nair 54; Shane Watson 2/25, Sreenath Aravind 1/32) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 191/5 (Virat Kohli 79, A.B. De Villiers 55; Mohammed Shami 2/34, Carlos Brathwaite 1/18).