Bangalore finish on top of table

Royal Challengers Bangalore 129 for 2 (Gayle 75*) beat Chennai Super Kings 128 for 8 (Dhoni 70*, Vettori 2-15) by eight wickets

	Zaheer Khan caused problems at the top, removing Michael Hussey and Suresh Raina to trigger the Chennai slide

Match Meter RCB Zaheer Khan took out Michael Hussey in the third over RCB Zaheer bounced out Suresh Raina in the fifth over RCB S Badrinath holed out to long-off to leave Chennai tottering at 22 for 4 from 5.4 overs CSK MS Dhoni plundered 17 runs in the last over of the innings bowled by Abhimanyu Mithun RCB Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli took 18 runs off Doug Bollinger in the fourth over of the chase  Advantage Honours even

Chris Gayle indulged himself after his bowlers restricted Chennai Super Kings to a below-par 128 to ensure Royal Challengers Bangalore will finish top of the points table. The result also secured their berth in this year's Champions League.

Chennai were always facing inevitable defeat once their top order crumbled six overs into the game. Tottering at 22 for 4, MS Dhoni consolidated initially before looting quick runs in the end, but 128 wasn't going to test Bangalore at the Chinnaswamy Stadium. Especially with Gayle unleashing hell.

Gayle left his mark on the chase and it was violent. A six flew over third man, another disappeared over cow corner, a third, off Suresh Raina, landed in the upper tier of the long-on stands and a fierce straight drive rammed into Albie Morkel's shin. A limping Morkel continued bowling after receiving some treatment but Gayle promptly dispatched a short delivery over the deep midwicket boundary. But while Gayle thrilled the home crowd, it was the bowlers who won the game for Bangalore.

The first couple of overs set the tone: Zaheer Khan nearly yorked M Vijay and beat Michael Hussey with couple of outswingers, and S Aravind hit a nagging line and length to handcuff Chennai. The breakthrough came in the third over when Hussey dragged an away-going delivery on to his stumps. It was a sign of things to come. Vijay hung his bat out against Aravind, Suresh Raina top edged a pull off Zaheer and when S Badrinath lifted Daniel Vettori to long-off Chennai were wobbling at 22 for 4 from 5.4 overs.

It was left to Dhoni to play the lone ranger but every time he tried to switch to attacking mode, a wicket fell, forcing him to revert to caution. He added 26 runs with Wriddhiman Saha from 6.4 overs and Chennai reached 60 for 4 in 12 overs. Saha swung Gayle for a six over midwicket in the next over to suggest a possible change in the mindset but he fell, trying to repeat the shot off Virat Kohli in the 14th over.

Dhoni was on a run-a-ball 19 at that stage and soon swung Gayle for his second six to hint at a revival, but Dwayne Bravo was trapped by an arm-ball from Vettori, forcing Dhoni to slow down again. He went quiet for a couple of overs and it was only in the final over, bowled by Abhimanyu Mithun, that Dhoni really displayed his brand of violence. He pulled a six and a four before he smote one over the midwicket boundary to finish off in style. It was far from enough though.

Teams should have a say in pitches - Jennings

Ray Jennings: "The home side should have a say in the pitch but you cannot go over the top"

Ray Jennings, the Royal Challengers Bangalore coach, has said home teams in the IPL should be able to prepare pitches to their liking but there should be limits on far they can go.

"If I have Dale Steyn, I can't prepare a pitch with long grass [ because] then, I am going over the top," Jennings told reporters in Bangalore on Saturday. "If you prepare wickets that are so slow, you are again going over the top. There should be boundaries. There should be limits between the maximum and minimum."

Jennings' comments come in the wake of the US$50,000 fine the BCCI imposed on Shane Warne for his public spat with Rajasthan Cricket Association (RCA) secretary Sanjay Dixit over changing of pitches in Jaipur.

According to Jennings, weaker teams are more likely to want to play on "unrealistic wickets", because that gives them a better chance of beating a good side. "If you prepare a wicket that is unpredictable then there is a chance of the weaker side winning," Jennings said. "The [Rajasthan] Royals have a better win ratio at home because the pitch there is slower than anywhere else. Warne is actually quiet smart and he packs the team with spinners and all of them are very different. It is important to use home advantage but the question is, to what extent?"

Bangalore are already through to the playoffs and while Jennings approved of the new knockout system, he said playing three games in four days was unfair and that teams will have to be careful to conserve their energy in order to cope. "You [have] got to save energy with the way you travel and ensure there is no disturbance from the public in the hotel. It is important to protect their energy and protect their frustration level; the frustration level in a lost tour is very high. People get tired quickly because of the fatigue level and extra pressure off the field."

When asked for his opinion on the local Karnataka talent in the team, Jennings chose to respond with a criticism of the structure of Indian domestic cricket that does not put players under pressure on a regular basis. "A lot of cricket is played on flat wickets and there is not much pressure. You have got to make sporting wickets. In a four-day game, if you don't get a hundred, then it is considered that you batted badly. You don't do enough fielding under pressure and so when the pressure is there, you don't take the catch.

"There is talent in India but make that talent play under huge amount of pressure and then you will see the results."

Teams target finish in top two

Match facts

Sunday, May 22, Kolkata
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

	Sachin Tendulkar will want to improve his strike-rate

Big Picture

Both the teams have got good news even before they start playing their last game. Kings XI Punjab, two points behind them, were the only side that could prevent them from progressing to the play-offs, and they lost to Deccan Chargers to clear the way. That doesn't make this game inconsequential, though. The two teams ahead of them are ahead by just one and two points respectively with one game to play. So Kolkata Knight Riders and Mumbai Indians will be playing to make it to the elusive top two, for those sides get a second chance even if they lose their first qualifier.

If Chennai Super Kings (18 points) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore (17 points) in the preceding game, the winner here will directly make it to the top two. If Bangalore win, though, Kolkata and Mumbai (both at 16 points) will look for a win big enough to take them past Chennai's net run-rate. There is all to play for on the final Sunday of the long and winding IPL.

Form guide (most recent first)

Kolkata Knight Riders: WLWLW (third in points table)
Mumbai Indians LLLWW (fourth in points table)

Team talk

Now is the time that teams will want to stop experimenting with their combinations. Kolkata, though, will have to wait on Jacques Kallis' fitness, who didn't bat in their win over Pune Warriors on May 19.

Mumbai haven't quite been experimenting too much, and despite three straight losses will feel comfortable with their XI. Except they need a suitable opening partner for Sachin Tendulkar. How they will hope that Davy Jacobs is fit.

In the spotlight

Deserving owner of the orange cap at one point in the tournament, Sachin Tendulkar has failed to score at more than a run a ball in his last five efforts. His strike-rate over the season has been 107.33. He will want to set the record straight in the final stages of the tournament.

Shakib Al Hasan has been used sparingly by Kolkata, but whenever he's been called on he has made an impact. Nine wickets in five matches is a strike-rate of a wicket every two overs - priceless. Will he be part of their plans in this crucial final stage of the tournament?

Prime numbers

• Yusuf Pathan has yet to score to a half-century in his nine innings. That doesn't make him a failure, though. Used as an impact batsman, Yusuf has scored 221 runs off 150 balls.
• Among bowlers with a minimum of 10 wickets this year, Lasith Malinga's strike-rate of a wicket every 11.3 deliveries is the best
  The chatter
  
  
  "We want to go out there and look to win the next game as they we would have a very bright chance of moving into the second spot in the table, so that's what we will focus on."
  Gautam Gambhir sets the agenda for the game

Dhawan puts Punjab out of contention

Shikhar Dhawan got his highest Twenty20 score

The happy ever-after fairytale ending to the league phase campaign that Kings XI Punjab were expecting slipped through their fingers, literally, in Dharamsala. Their rise from the dead has been the story of the IPL so far, but they crumbled in the field in a must-win game to crash out of contention. It was dropped catches galore, spiced up with misfields and missed run-outs that let the Deccan Chargers openers, Shikhar Dhawan and D Ravi Teja, deliver just the kind of a partnership that would lift the spirits of a struggling team in its final game this season. While Amit Mishra did his own bit with a hat-trick, it was their stand that put the task beyond Punjab's batsmen. The defeat for the hosts meant Chennai Super Kings, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Mumbai Indians and Kolkata Knight Riders have qualified for the play-offs.

The first over set the tone for the day. There was encouragement for Praveen Kumar from the track, with the ball moving both ways, but there wasn't much the bowlers could do to pick up wickets when not backed up by their fielders. Ryan McLaren missed an attempt to run out Shikhar Dhawan first ball and Ravi Teja was dropped by Paul Valthaty in the deep off a wild heave moments later. Both chances were difficult, yet manageable, and proved decisive in the outcome.

The opening bowlers, Praveen and Ryan Harris, erred in line, particularly against Dhawan, who comfortably picked them off through square leg and fine leg for boundaries. While Dhawan looked determined to bat through, it was Ravi Teja's responsibility to maintain the high tempo that was set early. Dhawan focussed on the gaps, with timing and power enabling him to pierce them with ease, while Ravi Teja went over the top, accomplishing the task he was sent out for, albeit with much fortune.

Streaky as he was, Ravi Teja sent Punjab's frustration levels soaring. He survived a run-out in the 11th over - umpire Asad Rauf didn't call for a replay - and edged the next two balls of McLaren to the third-man boundary. He was dropped by Harris the next over, and proceeded to launch Piyush Chawla for two massive sixes in an over that yielded 20 runs. By the time he was finally caught, he had smashed 60 when he should have been dismissed for a duck.

Having fed on tripe bowled on the pads, Dhawan drove Harris twice for boundaries through the off, then ceded the floor to Ravi Teja, before taking the lead once again following his dismissal. His intentions were clear right after the second time-out, as he slog-swept Piyush Chawla and Bhargav Bhatt, and scarred Harris further in his return spell with consecutive fours, including one that almost decapitated the man at the non-striker's end, Cameron White. His first six, predictably in the slog overs, was over cow-corner but he was unfortunate to miss out on three figures, not being able to farm much of the strike from then on.

Punjab had opted for a change in strategy, opting to chase, leaving some a little surprised particularly since Adam Gilchrist had scored a blistering ton at the same venue after batting first in their previous game. The pressure of a big target, despite the friendly surface and the small boundaries, was too difficult a challenge. Paul Valthaty perished in the second over, Shaun Marsh smashed JP Duminy for successive boundaries but was caught on the third attempt, edging to short third man. Gilchrist stood in the way and there was hope when he launched Anand Rajan over extra cover and slog-swept Pragyan Ojha into the stands.

Unlike Punjab, though, Deccan caught well, and when Gilchrist drove Daniel Christian straight to Cameron White in the 11th over, the game was decided. Mishra got into the act, his first wicket, that of McLaren, a product of an excellent diving catch by Christian in the deep. Mandeep Singh swung and missed to be stumped off the next ball, and Harris edged a googly straight to second slip to complete the hat-trick. The element of suspense Punjab brought to a mostly predictable tournament was over.

How will the Punjab fairytale end?

Match facts

Saturday, May 21, Dharamsala
Start time 1600 (1030 GMT)

	Through rain and shine, Shaun Marsh has been the one constant in Punjab's campaign

Big Picture

The task ahead of Kings XI Punjab is simple: beat Deccan Chargers by as big a margin as possible on Saturday. Mumbai Indians' sorry show against Rajasthan Royals has brightened Punjab's prospects, and provided them with windows of opportunity at both ends of the Net Run-Rate curve. Punjab are already ahead of Mumbai on NRR, and if they win by a big enough margin, they will leapfrog Kolkata as well, reducing the final league game into a shoot-out. If, on the other hand, Punjab win by a small margin, they will remain behind Kolkata on NRR, and will want Mumbai to either lose, or win by a margin huge enough to pull Kolkata to fifth on the table. All these permutations, however, will count for nought if Punjab lose against Deccan.

The possibilities are endless, and the situation calls for cool heads that can ignore the distractions and approach the game with uncluttered minds. In captain Adam Gilchrist and coach Michael Bevan, Punjab have just the men for the job. So far, Punjab's campaign has hurtled along like a chronic insomniac over-dosing on sleeping pills: with arguably the weakest side on paper in the competition, they have been through a three-match winning streak and a five-game losing run, followed by four successive wins. Can they hold it together for one last game?

The dark cloud in Punjab's horizon is that, if they can't pull off a big win tomorrow, Kolkata and Mumbai will know exactly what they need to do when they play their last game. The darker cloud - literally - is that a rain-out in Kolkata will knock out Punjab irrespective of Saturday's outcome. The silver lining is that the normally meek Deccan are further weakened by the absence of Kumar Sangakkara, and have little to play for at the end of a forgettable season. The hills in Dharamsala could witness an interesting duel tomorrow.

Form guide (most recent first)

Deccan Chargers: WWLLL (eighth in points table)
Kings XI Punjab: WWWWL (fifth in points table)

Team talk

Both teams are on winning streaks, and are unlikely to fiddle with their combinations. Sangakkara's absence might force Deccan to fall back on the hopelessly out-of-form Cameron White. Chris Lynn and Michael Lumb are the other likely replacements.

The more interesting variable in the lead-up to the game could be the nature of the strip at Dharamsala. The ball swung around in windy conditions in the Bangalore game, and there might be assistance from the track on Saturday. Preparing a seamer-friendly wicket can however be a dangerous move, against an attack that includes Dale Steyn and Ishant Sharma.

In the spotlight

Talk of Punjab's campaign, and only the spurts of brilliance stand out - from Paul Valthaty, Adam Gilchrist and Piyush Chawla. Few will remember a single innings of note from Shaun Marsh, yet he has been the only constant in their topsy-turvy campaign. He scores a half-century once in nearly every two IPL outings, and is the only batsman who averages more than 50 across four seasons. That's staggering for anyone, but especially for a middle-order batsman, who has often batted in the shadow of Gilchrist, Yuvraj Singh, Kumar Sangakkara and Mahela Jayawardene.

IPL 2011 has been a microcosm of Ishant Sharma's international career. He's managed to hit speeds of 150+kph, got the ball to kick and spit at the batsmen's throats from a length, and he's bowled the spell of the season. Amid those crests, he has also slipped in listless lengths, and has taken his share of tap. Which version of Ishant will turn up for the last game?

Prime numbers

• Punjab are the specialists at ending streaks for their opponents. They ended seven-match streaks for Pune and Bangalore. The former was a losing streak, the latter was a winning streak and both are IPL records. 
• Gilchrist's smash-a-thon against Bangalore has reaffirmed his spot at the top of the IPL six-hitters chart. He now has 80, seven ahead of Yusuf Pathan, and nine clear of Suresh Raina
  The chatter
  
  
  "Ok so Dharamsala is beautiful, but if the pitch plays anything like the nets did today, there could be a fatality!"
  Dale Steyn's Tweet after his first net session, on what might have been an under-prepared strip, is actually a veiled warning

Ganguly's last chance in dead rubber

Match details

Saturday, May 21, Delhi
Start time 2000 (1430 GMT)

	Robin Uthappa has not lived up to his billing

Big picture

It's the first dead rubber of the IPL. Somehow, for six weeks the tournament has managed to not have a single match completely devoid of meaning. Even the eternal optimist will find it hard to squeeze an ounce of significance out of Saturday's match between Delhi Daredevils and Pune Warriors though.

There are a couple of individual players to watch. It may be the last glimpse of Sourav Ganguly as a cricketer, Robin Uthappa will be keen for one big performance to step up his bid for an India place and Varun Aaron won't mind another opportunity to showcase his pace. For most though, it's the kind of game they'll want to end as soon as possible. There hasn't been a match at the Kotla since May 2, so it's difficult to know what to expect from the pitch.

In a way, the match is almost an advertisement for a two-tier system in which the bottom two sides are relegated. As the IPL group stage peters out to a dull end, the English football premier league will see its relegation battle go down to the last day with five sides fighting for safety. An introduction of a similar system in the IPL will create interest in the tournament for the struggling teams till the end.

Form guide (most recent first)

Delhi: LLLWL (tenth in points table)
Pune: LLWWL(ninth in points table)

Team talk

Aaron Finch has gone back to Melbourne after hurting his shoulder, so won't get the chance to improve his dismal IPL numbers. Both sides may as well give opportunities to their fringe players. Colin Ingram and Andrew McDonald have not been given enough of a chance for Delhi, while 18-year-old Unmukt Chand was given two games at the start of the tournament and was then dropped.

Kamran Khan, Abhishek Jhunjhunwala and Mohnish Mishra have all disappointed for Pune, but may get another chance now that nothing is at stake.

Play ESPNcricinfo Team selector.

In the spotlight

Curious Australian eyes will be on Callum Ferguson who has been starved of opportunities and runs so far. He could run into quite a few fellow Australians in the Delhi team.

After a forgettable season, it's Irfan Pathan's last chance to prove his doubters wrong. His $1.9mn auction price has been a weight around his neck, and perhaps with the campaign drawing to a close he will be able to play more freely.

Prime numbers

• Delhi have actually amassed the second-highest number of runs this IPL season; their 2031 is second to Kings XI Punjab's 2108. However, the number of runs they've given way, 2073, is far more than any other team.
• Pune's Mithun Manhas has the most ducks in IPL 2011 - four

The chatter

"We hope to make it to the semis. We have started on the next season. We are into a review process. We will bounce back strongly next year and things will change for us next season."
Delhi coach David Shipperd is already thinking a year ahead

"If you see he has taken around 17 [16] wickets in the tournament so far. We are also working on his batting and fielding; he is a bright candidate for one-dayers in the near future."
Yuvraj Singh predicts big things for legspinner Rahul Sharma

No full-time coaching role - Warne

Shane Warne thinks a short-term consultancy role would suit him better than a full-time coaching position

Shane Warne has ruled out a full-time coaching role with Rajasthan Royals in the future. Warne, who played his last IPL game for Rajasthan against Mumbai Indians on Friday said at the post-match press conference that he "definitely, 100% won't be here as a coach for the entire tournament. There's no point [being here as a coach] for seven weeks, I might as well be playing."

The 41-year old legspinner, did not however rule out a short-term consultancy role."I can see myself in a consultancy role," he said, "whether it be for 10 days pre-tournament, maybe a week in the middle and a week at the end, maybe a few days, maybe just at the end."

When Warne announced his IPL retirement earlier in the tournament, Rajasthan Royals released a statement which stated that Warne would "continue his association with the Royals in coming years". Warne, however, indicated that nothing had been decided yet. "That [the consultancy role] might be with the Rajasthan Royals … I have had four years with them so they might think its time for a new injection from someone else with some different ideas … they might still want me, I'm not sure. In the next 12 months I might be associated with somebody else.

"Obviously Rajasthan are my first priority but if I can't come to an agreement with them then I'll look elsewhere," he said.

Warne has played 55 games for Rajasthan in the IPL, picking up 57 wickets at an average for 25.38. Warne captained Rajasthan to victory in the inaugural season of the IPL but the franchise's fortunes slumped in the next two seasons. They failed to make the playoffs this season, and their last few games were overshadowed by the controversy surrounding the public spat between Warne and Rajasthan Cricket Association secretary Sanjay Dixit after the May 11 game against Royal Challengers Bangalore for which Warne was finedUS$50,000 by the BCCI.

Warne said that "no one had approached" him to play in Australia's Big Bash League and that "at this stage I am never going to play another game."