Warner sets Kotla alight as Daredevils bt KKR by 40 runs

Meanwhile,Ishant Sharma’s inconsistent Twenty20 form continued as he went for 17 runs in the only over he bowled.

During his journey to the three-digit mark,Warner made a few important points. After being involved in a vital partnership of 128 runs with Paul Collingwood (53),the opener remained unbeaten to see Delhi reach 177. He didn’t just build the plinth but was also involved in the construction of the high-rise that they eventually ended up with.

In an action-packed start,Gayle had Sehwag stumped after the opener had hit consecutive boundaries in the first over,while Gautam Gambhir and Dinesh Kartik followed soon after to leave Delhi struggling at 38/3.

Warner negotiated Gayle’s off-spin well though,and never let the scoring rate dip despite the fall of three quick wickets at the other end.

For company,Warner had the experienced Paul Collingwood,who replaced AB de Villiers in the line-up,and the two joined forces to avert what was turning into a mini-crisis.

There was just one blip in Warner’s knock. The left-hander played an on-drive into the hands of Murali Karthik,who seemed to have taken a low catch. As the next batsman Kedar Jadhav walked in,Warner stood near the boundary rope waiting for the third umpires’ verdict. With Warner at 96 at this stage,it seemed that the Aussie had once again missed his ton. After several replays,the third umpire ruled in Warner’s favour and the Aussie returned to reach the milestone.

Kolkata’s chase started off on a disastrous note with Delhi skipper Gautam Gambhir juggling his bowlers well. With five Kolkata wickets going to different bowlers,it was evident that Delhi were hunting as a team.

Later in the innings,when opening bowler Dirk Nannes left the field with a bleeding left finger,Collingwood took over and scalped one wicket in a tidy five-ball spell.

Despite being dropped by Sehwag once,Gayle was the top-scorer with 30. With none of their batsmen staying on the crease for long enough,Kolkata’s revival — their win in the last game came after a string of three losses — was short-lived.