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A sensational Champions Twenty20 League game saw Royal Challengers Bangalore come back from the dead with a frightening display of power over South Australia.
It may have been predictable that two sides with little in their bowling attacks to worry batsmen may lead to a high scoring game but the script for this match defied belief.
Dan Harris looked to have set up his side's victory with an unbeaten 108 in their total of 214-2. This meant Royal Challengers needed to score 30 more than the highest winning total batting second in the history of the tournament.
With Chris Gayle, Tillakaratne Dilshan and Virat Kohli at the top of the order the hosts had to give it a real go but what followed was both exciting and bizarre. Gayle's belligerent cameo of 26 was soon over but Dilshan with 74 and Kohli with 70 enjoyed a century stand that at one stage saw the team on 165-1.
In the first 15 overs the Australian attack had bowled just two deliveries which would hit the stumps. Once they made a breakthrough the Bangalore crowd looked on in horror as their side imploded. They lost seven wickets for 37 runs as finally Shaun Tait showed his team-mates how to take wickets. He took three in the 19th over with two clean bowled but the drama was just beginning as despite a run-out in the final over, Arun Karthik scurried a bye off the penultimate ball to leave six required for the win.
Darren Christian's delivery was slow and bounced nicely into the arc of Karthik's bat and disappeared over cow corner to secure a semi-final meeting with New South Wales.
The Challengers are3.10 to win the tournament while New South Wales are 3.75.
For the second year Royal Challengers had lost their opening two games and still qualified for the final matches.
With David Warner in their ranks New South Wales have their own destruction machine and have a better balanced attack so should overcome their hosts on Friday but the crowd can expect big runs and plenty of fireworks.
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