Bangalore banking on Gayle against Mumbai

Bangalore Royal Challengers captain Daniel Vettori is counting on big-hitting West Indies batsman Chris Gayle to rebound against Mumbai Indians in the IPL final qualifier at MA Chidambaram Stadium on Friday.

Vettori said on Thursday that Gayle had been "the catalyst" in guiding them to the knockout stages.

Gayle joined Bangalore as an injury replacement two weeks into the IPL, and helped it qualify for the four-team playoffs as the No. 1 team, but the side lost to the defending champion Chennai Super Kings in the opening playoff on Tuesday.

Gayle scored two centuries and two 50s among 519 runs with a strike rate of 184 in the league phase, but was dismissed for 8 by Chennai, which won by six wickets with two balls to spare to secure a place in Saturday's final.

"We know Chris has played well and he has been the main scorer for us this season winning so many games for us. We are still confident that we can win games," said Vettori.

Bangalore posted a challenging 175-4 against Chennai after being asked to bat, with Virat Kohli leading the way with 70 not out.

However, a fluent Suresh Raina hit 73 not out to guide the defending champs to victory.
Mumbai, meanwhile, pulled off two thrilling back-to-back victories to knock Kolkata Knight Riders out of the playoffs in the 10-team Twenty20 tournament.

Sachin Tendulkar-led Mumbai completed a spectacular last-ball victory against Kolkata in the final league game to dash its hopes of finishing second in the league behind Bangalore.

Then on Wednesday, Mumbai edged Kolkata by four wickets with four deliveries to spare in the eliminator playoff. The new playoff format is designed in such a way that the top two teams get two chances to qualify for the final.

Mumbai, last year's finalist, is cautious about Gayle's touch and coach Robin Singh says his side has formulated plans to counter him.

"Obviously you cannot ignore the fact that he is in terrific form," Singh said. "Similarly with most of our bowlers, we have been bowling exceptionally well.

"You have to back yourself to bowl well against anyone. We have thought about how we want to go about things. We have our own plans ready for what we would like to do. The important thing is to be able to execute those plans," the former India allrounder added.

Mumbai won the only clash between the teams by nine wickets, before Gayle arrived.

Chennai was keen to discover who it will meet in the final at home, where it has won all seven games this season in a dominant display.

"We certainly are not taking anything for granted," Chennai coach Stephen Fleming said, striking a note of caution. "The team that makes it to the final is obviously good. We need to play equally well," he added.