De Villiers, who scored a whirlwind 47 not out off just 17 balls, helped RCB score 72 runs in the last 3.5 overs to overhaul Deccan's stiff target of 182 with seven balls to spare.
But de Villiers said if not for the 64-ball 91-run opening stand between Dilshan and Gayle, chasing the target would have been next to impossible.
"We collapsed a few times in the IPL before. So we needed our openers to build a foundation to launch a blitz right at the end which they did, and luckily I was there in the end to do the job," he said at the post-match press conference last night.
De Villiers also credited young Mayank Agarwal for scoring quick 18 runs off just 6 balls, which according to him set the tone for the chase towards the end.
"Some of the players around me played amazing knocks. Mayank, above all, pushed the button by hitting two sixes and a boundary. He took risks even before I did. His knock set the game perfectly for me to finish off," he said.
De Villiers, however, considered himself lucky to rip apart countryman Dale Steyn in the 18th over, which cost Deccan a whopping 23 runs.
He said overheard Deccan skipper Kumar Sangakkara's communication to Steyn before the start of the over, which helped him to mould his game accordingly.
"Luckily I heard Sangakkara communicating to Steyn to bowl short of length at me, and I maneuvered my stroke accordingly. From then on I knew Dale would bowl fuller and played my strokes in anticipation," he said. MORE
