AB blitzkrieg puts Bangalore in final

Bangalore : AB de Villiers played a breathtaking knock to singlehandedly lead Royal Challengers Bangalore fight back and take them into the Indian Premier League final with a thrilling four wicket win over Gujarat Lions here on Tuesday.

Chasing 159, RCB looked down and out at 29 for five before de Villiers smashed 79 off 47 balls to script a sensational comeback and take the team home in 18.2 overs. The Lions were outdone by one man's class as the efforts of Dhawal Kulkarani and Dwayne Smith went in vain.

With the spectacular win, RCB are into their third IPL final and one step away from their maiden title. Lions on other hand will have another chance to make the summit clash in the Qualifier 2 in Delhi on Friday.

The RCB were expected to overcome the target with minimum fuss but tricky batting conditions at the normally batting friendly Chinnaswamy made the job tougher for them.

Virat Kohli and Chris Gayle can close the game in a space of a few overs but the devastating opening pair had an off day. Kohli, who has been in sensational form this IPL, suffered a rare failure when he dragged a wide one off Kulkarni on to his stumps, stunning the crowd into silence.

The disappointment on the face of India's star batsman was evident as he walked back into the dressing room. The two of his four hundreds in the competition had come against the Lions.

Brief scores: Gujarat Lions 158 (Dwayne Smith 73, Shane Watson 4/29) lost to Royal Challengers Bangalore 159 for 6 in 18.2 overs (AB De Villiers 79 no, Iqbal Abdulla 33 no, Dhawal Kulkarni 4/14)