The Bangalore batsmen again failed to fire as the Royal Challengers were given a 9-wicket mauling by Kings XI Punjab in their Indian Premier League match here Monday. Punjab restricted Bangalore batsmen to 143 and then chased the target for the loss of only one wicket, thanks mainly to Shaun Marsh's hard hitting. Marsh did not show any mercy to a hapless opposition as he remained unbeaten on 74 and pushed his team to second spot on the standings. Misbah-ul-Haq and Virat Kohli failed to capitalize on their starts and exited after each had scored 21. Bangalore captain Rahul Dravid, who earlier decided to bat, again failed to silence his critics after scoring only 29. Punjab's Sreesanth picked up three wickets for 29 runs. Bangalore needed to strike early to put pressure on Punjab, but the Australian duo of Shaun Marsh and James Hopes got the home side off to a confident start. Marsh in fact saw the side through. With his unbeaten 74, Marsh now has an average of 98.33 in the IPL. Bangalore Royal Challengers - 143 for 8 (Boucher 39, Sreesanth 3-29); Kings XI Punjab - 144 for 1 (Marsh 74*, Pomersbach 34*). Clarke may miss first Test Australia batsman and vice captain Michael Clarke may miss next week's first Test against West Indies following the death of his fiancee's father, Australian Associated Press reported on Monday. Clarke was granted compassionate leave by Cricket Australia last week to allow him to stay at home with model Lara Bingle during her father's illness. Graham Bingle died from cancer on Saturday at a Sydney hospital. His funeral is due to be held later this week. Australia play a three-day match against a Jamaica Select XI starting on Friday before the first test begins on May 22.
