Adam Gilchrist crashed the fastest 50 in IPL history to lead Deccan Chargers to victory over Delhi Daredevils and a place in the final.
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Delhi batted first on a decent deck and recovered from the shock of losing two wickets in the first over to post 153.
It looked a challenging target, but it did not faze Gilchrist who smashed 85 off 35 balls to set his side on their way to a six-wicket victory.
Any thoughts of a circumspect start with so much at stake were snuffed out in the first over as Delhi lost both openers without a run on the board.
Gautam Gambhir gave Ryan Harris the charge only to slice the ball straight to RP Singh at third man and unlike in the game against Bangalore, he held the catch with ease.
The batsmen crossed while the ball was in the air and off the following ball David Warner crashed a short ball straight to Herschelle Gibbs at point.
AB de Villiers came in and was immediately sent back by the umpires as Tillkaratne Dilshan had stepped on the field before him, as the drama increased yet further.
Deccan were revved up at this stage, but Dilshan and Virender Sehwag produced a stunning counter attack.
Both were savage on the bowlers, unfazed by the state of the game and they put on 85 in 10 overs.
Sehwag fell for 39 in the over after the strategy break, trapped lbw by Andrew Symonds, but Dilshan kept up the momentum and went past 50 with a glorious square cut for 4.
De Villiers took some time to find the middle of the bat but cleared the fence a couple of times before edging behind to Gilchrist off RP Singh.
Dilshan lacked support from the tail and was run out in the final over for 65, as Delhi’s innings closed on 153.
Gilchrist’s decision to bowl first was questioned prior to the game and he set off like a man with a point to prove.
He smashed five successive fours in Dirk Nannes’ first over and was totally unfazed by the departure of his opening partner Herschelle Gibbs as he went past 50 in 17 balls – the fastest half century in the history of The IPL and fifth fastest of all time.
The Australian continued to plunder the bowling and raced to 85 before falling off the final ball of the 10th over attempting to smash Amit Mishra out of the park.
The foundation had been laid, as the required rate was down to 5.4 per over when Gilchrist left the stage and Symonds carried on the assault with 24 from 15 balls.
The excellent Mishra claimed the wicket of Symonds but Suman and Sharma steered Deccan to a six-wicket win with 14 balls to spare.
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