Sports

Kushal Malla , Rohit Kumar Paudel save Gladiators in Everest Premier League

Kushal Malla and Rohit Kumar Paudel played perfect role of finishers as Bhairahawa Gladiators defeated Chitwan Tigers by four wickets to enter the second Qualifier of the Everest Premier League on Wednesday. Kushal Malla , Rohit Kumar Paudel save Gladiators in Everest Premier League

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Adarsha Dhakal

Published at : December 20, 2018

Updated at : December 20, 2018 08:27

Kathmandu

Electing to field first in the Eliminator game at the Tribhuvan University Stadium, Gladiators only had to deal with stubborn Dipendra Singh Airee whose performance steered Tigers to a respectable 139-8 in 20 overs. Gladiators had to recover twice in the game, the second of which took them to victory after Malla and Paudel put on an unbroken half century partnership to guide the team to 142-6.

Gladiators will now take on Kathmandu Kings XI in the second Qualifier match on Thursday for a place in the final. Gyanendra Malla-led Lalitpur Patriots has already reached the final after it edged Kings XI by one wicket in the first Qualifier on Tuesday.

Sharad Vesawkar’s Gladiators had a disastrous reply to its chase when it was reduced to 20-3 after losing all three foreign recruits Mohammad Naveed (four), Ravi Inder Singh (four) and Ryan ten Doeschate (duck) cheaply. Skipper Vesawkar himself led the resurrection adding 56 runs for the fourth wicket with opener Pradeep Airee.

Gladiators went on to lose three wickets for 15 runs to be 91-6 in 14.2 overs. Dipendra began with the dismissal of Vesawkar and it was followed by the departure of Pradeep and Aarif Sheikh (six). Pradeep, who later walked away with man-of-the-match award, scored 42 off 38 balls with six boundaries. Vesawkar chipped in 29 off 27 with three hits to the fence.

Tigers appeared most likely to secure the second Qualifier berth but what unfolded thereafter caught it off-guard. Criticised for not managing to contribute to the team in the league stage, Paudel and Malla staged a brilliant fightback handing Gladiators a victory that ultimately looked like a cakewalk. The two batsmen stuck to the crease and found boundaries frequently in their 51-run stand from just 24 deliveries.

Malla struck two fours and two sixes in his 13-ball 27 and Paudel made 24 off 14 with two fours and a six. Birthday-boy Kamal Singh Airee took 3-26 from four overs for Tigers. Vesawkar was ecstatic to see his young boys playing crucial role in team’s victory. “It was not easy at the centre but the way Kushal and Rohit finished off the game was amazing,” said the captain.

“We had one good over which changed the complexion of the match. Credit goes to Kushal because he is too young to play at this level and the way he performed was brilliant. Rohit didn’t have too many chances in previous games but he proved himself again today,” added Vesawkar who is now close to another final in Nepali franchise cricket league.

Tigers had an identical start after it lost Irish opener Paul Stirling (14), his opening partner Sandeep Sunar (four) and skipper Prithu Baskota for an agonising 11-ball duck to be 24-3 after Naveed took two and Ten Doeschate had one scalp. Dipendra led the recovery adding 31 runs for the fourth wicket with John Simpson (14).

Dipendra continued to fight for Tigers and scored 56 off 45 balls with six boundaries and one maximum. He is now the second leading scorer of the tournament with 231 runs—46 runs behind Gladiators Singh.

Naveed was pick of the Gladiators bowlers with 3-24 from four overs, while Avinash Bohora was economical in his 2-13 off four overs. Tigers captain Baskota was left dejected with the defeat despite getting an upper hand in the game. “They had long batting lineup but we conceded more boundaries. We failed to attack from the outfield. We should have closed it out at 91-6 but couldn’t do it,” said Baskota.

Summary

Bhairahawa Gladiators 142-6 in 18.2 overs (P Airee 42, S Vesawkar 29, K Malla 27 not out, RK Paudel 24 not out; KS Airee 3-26, LS Bhandari 1-27) beats Chitwan Tigers 139-8 in 20 overs (DS Airee 56, P Stirling 14, J Simpson 14; M Naveed 3-24, A Bohora 2-13) by four wickets

Man-of-the-match: P Airee

Adarsha Dhakal
Adarsha Dhakal is a sports reporter for The Kathmandu Post. He has been reporting on sports for more than a decade, focusing on cricket, basketball and sports features. He has been with the Post for over five years and has worked for various other national publications.