New Zealand batsman Ross Taylor and his Bangalore Royal Challengers face a tense playoff for third to book a Champions League spot after they lost their Indian Premier League (IPL) cricket semifinal early today.
Chasing 185 to beat the top qualifiers, Sachin Tendulkar's Mumbai Indians, Bangalore could only post 149 for nine off 20 overs for a 35-run defeat in Mumbai.
Taylor, batting at No 5, hit 31 not out off 30 balls as the lower order collapsed.
It was Taylor's highest score of the tournament as he boosted his average to 22 at a strike rate of 117.33. He is the last of the four current New Zealand players remaining in the IPL, with Daniel Vettori (Delhi), Brendon McCullum and Shane Bond (both Kolkata) missing out on the playoffs on net run rate.
Bangalore will play the losers of tomorrow's (NZT) second semifinal between the Stephen Fleming-coached Chennai Super Kings and the Deccan Chargers in the playoff for third on Sunday.
The top-three Indian sides will play in the lucrative Champions League in India later in the year, with Taylor's New Zealand Twenty20 champions Central Districts having already booked their spot.
- NZPA
Cricket: Taylor's Bangalore lose IPL semi
Ross Taylor scored 31 for Bangalore against Mumbai, his highest score of the tournament. Photo / Hawke's Bay Today
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