DHARAMSALA, May 26 (Reuters) - Royal Challengers Bengaluru stormed into the Indian Premier League final with a commanding 92-run win over Gujarat Titans in qualifier one, powered by captain Rajat Patidar's unbeaten 93 that moved the defending champions closer to a second successive title.
Chasing 255 – the highest target in IPL playoff history – Gujarat never took off and were bowled out for 162 in 19.3 overs, unable to keep pace against Bengaluru's clinical bowling.
Put into bat, Bengaluru dominated the powerplay to reach 76-1 before Krunal Pandya and Patidar capitalised on favourable batting conditions at the picturesque Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in the foothills of the Himalayas.
Gujarat, however, did not help their cause, putting down chances and conceding easy runs through sloppy fielding.
"I don't think our fielding was at par, dropping a couple of catches, and then our ground fielding was not up to the mark," Gujarat captain Shubman Gill said at the post-match presentation.
After Bengaluru's strong start, pacer Jason Holder briefly checked the scoring with quick dismissals of Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal in the same over.
But captain Patidar and Pandya wrested back control with aggressive strokeplay, including a 28-run assault in the 15th over that left Gujarat's bowlers under pressure.
Patidar, who was put down on 20, made the most of the reprieve to finish as Bengaluru's top scorer with an unbeaten 93 off 33 balls including five fours and nine sixes.
"At the start, I take eight to 10 balls to see how the wicket is behaving, what the ball is doing. And after that, I bat with a clear mind about how I have to go about it," Patidar said.
"I'm not worried about my wicket. So, I always like to put bowlers under pressure."
Rahul Tewatia led a late push with 68 off 43 in Gujarat's chase, but an early collapse to 51-5 in the powerplay proved costly. Rasikh Dar's double-wicket maiden was a highlight of the first six overs, while Jacob Duffy returned figures of 3-39.
Bengaluru will play the final on Sunday in Ahmedabad, while Gujarat will have another chance to qualify for the final when they face the winner of the eliminator in the second qualifier on Friday in Chandigarh.
(Reporting by Suramya Kaushik in Bengaluru, editing by Pritha Sarkar)
