CHANNAI: Murali Vijay struck a blistering 78 upfront and Suresh Raina chipped in with a crucial unbeaten 44 down the order as Chennai Super Kings beat Royal Challengers Bangalore by five wickets to keep alive their semi-final hopes in the Indian Premier League here today.

Opting to bat, Bangalore rode on a 49-ball 52 from South African Jacques Kallis to post a competitive 161-4, but the hosts overhauled the target with one over to spare at the floodlit M Chidambaram Stadium. Opener Vijay, who struck six sixes and four fours, gave Chennai the required momentum in the beginning, while Raina completed the task with an unbeaten 35-ball 44, which he made with the help of four fours and a six.

Chasing 162, Chennai were off to a good start with the openers Vijay and Matthew Hayden (12) raising 61 runs before a Anil Kumble googly trapped the Australian leg before wicket in the seventh over. Kevin Pietersen claimed Vijay just after the strategic break in the 11th over but by then the right-hander had set the tone for his team.

Earlier, Kallis helped Bangalore post the 162-run target. Kallis, who struck seven fours, got good support from Virat Kohli (34 off 24) as the duo added 63 runs for the third wicket. Pietersen (32 not out off 14 balls) and Cameron White (21 not out off 13 balls) — both playing their first IPL 3 matches — were the other main contributors.

On Tuesday, Mumbai Indians were made to sweat by Kings XI Punjab until Rajagopal Sathish and Harbhajan Singh — requiring to score at a run a ball in the last over — delivered their side to a sixth victory with four wickets in hand and three balls to spare at the Brabourne Stadium. Punjab were all out for 163 in 20 overs.

Sachin Tendulkar’s faith in left-hander Saurabh Tiwary paid off again as the Jharkhand captain scored 31 off 21 balls. Before the dramatic last few overs the home team’s top three batsmen — Shikhar Dhawan (50), Tendulkar (11) and Kieron Pollard (20) — played lofted shots and Irfan Pathan, Ravi Bopara and Shaun Marsh made no mistake at the fence.

As anticipated Marsh (57), playing his first match this season, shouldered the responsibility of anchoring the Kings XI innings until a peach of a yorker from man-of-the-match Lasith Malinga (4-22) dismantled his stumps. Except for the left-hander none of the others who followed after the dismissal of Ravi Bopara were able to repel the Mumbai Indians attack with any degree of confidence.