De Villiers wins hearts, gives his MOM award to Apanna

Jaipur April 24 (IANS) Royal Challengers Bangalore's star batsman AB de Villiers handed over his Man of the Match award to left-arm spinner K.P.Appanna, saying the youngster was the main star in the team's win over Rajasthan Royals here in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

De villiers, who scored a blistering 59 runs off 23 balls, made the gesture at the Sawai Man Singh Stadium here and touched many hearts as he handed over the Man of the Match prize to Apanna, who picked up four for 19 to give Royal Challengers a 46-run win here Monday night.

'I had a good game, I enjoyed my batting. I'd like to hand over this award to the man who took four wickets, Appanna. I haven't done this before. It's a team game,' de Villiers said.

Rajasthan Royals captain Rahul Dravid also praised Appanna.

'Appanna bowled well, he had the backing of a lot of runs behind him. He spun the ball, it's good for his confidence,' he said.

Dravid said poor bowling in the fag end of the innings cost them the match.

'The last five overs made the difference. Tillekaratne Dilshan and AB played really well in that period. The death bowling has been an area of concern. Am hitting some good shots but its important to get the right result as well,' Dravid said.

Bangalore captain Daniel Vettori said that they needed to carry forward the momentum as all teams are still in the running to qualify for the play-offs.

'The way Zak, Vinay and Harshal Patel was a confidence booster for the side. Pretty much every team still has a chance, so we need to keep winning.'