CRICKET – ABRAJ Dhurandhar and Abraj Indians were both victorious in the latest matchweek of the seventh season in Abraj Premier League (AAPL7).
Dhurandhar beat Abraj Lions by 10 runs in a high-scoring match. Lions won the toss and chose to field. Batting first, Dhurandhar piled up 182/6 in their 20 overs, thanks to a stunning innings from Satheesh, who smashed 85 off just 35 balls with 11 fours and five sixes at a strike rate of 242.86, reaching his 50 in only 24 balls.
His 59-run partnership with Mega came off just 29 balls and broke the game open, taking Dhurandhar from 102 after 13 overs to 153 after 17.1 overs. Mega added a steady 24 off 21, while captain Mishal Soni (14) and Lauv Lahoti (12) finished the innings. Extras contributed 23 runs.
For Lions, captain Sanito Dsilva was the standout bowler with three wickets for 29 runs, and he also took two catches. Ashish Lopes, Rohit, and Sandeep Shah took one wicket each, while Ajay P (3-0-19-0) was the most economical bowler of the innings.
Chasing 183, Lions kept pace with the required rate throughout. Lopes led the chase with an unbeaten 44 off 20 balls, hitting six fours and two sixes. Rohit (13 off six), Shah (12 off seven), Dsilva (12 off 10), and Abhishek (12 off 10) all made quick contributions, and the Lions reached 100 in 12.1 overs and 150 in 17.2 overs.
Lopes and Ajay P (32 off 22) put on an unbeaten 37 off 20 balls at the end, but the target proved just out of reach. Lions finished on 172/8.
For Dhurandhar, Ankit Bhutda (2/26), Lauv Lahoti (2/20) and Satheesh (2/20) took two wickets each. Captain Mishal Soni bowled a brilliant spell, conceding just seven runs in two overs and taking a wicket, while Mega chipped in with 1/22. Their regular breakthroughs in the middle overs kept the Lions just behind the rate.
Satheesh’s all-round brilliance earned him the Player of the Match (POM) award.
Meanwhile, Indians won against Abraj Violets by just five runs In their thrilling contest. Violets won the toss and chose to field. Indians struggled for momentum early, reaching 50 only in the eighth over and 101 after 15.4 overs. Tarun Parihar then turned the innings around with a blistering unbeaten 58 off just 21 balls, hitting three fours and six sixes at a strike rate of 276.19. He reached his 50 in only 19 balls, and the Indians smashed 65 runs off the last 26 balls to finish on 166/6.
His partnerships with Anand (27 off 15) and Krunal Kapasi (45 off 15), with Parihar scoring 43 off 11, changed the game. Anand added a quick 19 off 10, while Sagar (11), Vinay Gupta (11), John (10) and Deepak Bhakuni (10) chipped in.
For Violets, Ashwani Bhatia was the pick of the bowlers with two wickets for 17 runs. Bharath Jain (1/11), Paddy Dabhekar (1/25), and Amit Maity (1/20) took one wicket each, and a run-out by Amit Maity and Sushant Khar added another. Kartik Mistry bowled a tight spell of three overs for just 14 runs, including 10 dot balls.
Chasing 167, Violets made a flying start and raced to 54 in just 4.5 overs. Prem Devassy led the charge with an explosive 48 off 24 balls, hitting four fours and three sixes. The Violets were ahead of the required rate for most of the chase and reached 100 in 11.4 overs.
Indians struck back with three quick wickets for just five runs between overs 11 and 13, including back-to-back wickets for captain Gupta. Khar (21 off 17) and Ashwani Bhatia (21 off 19) kept the chase alive, and Devassy returned to keep the Violets in the hunt before falling in the 19th over.
Needing 10 runs off the final over, the Violets managed only four and finished on 161/6, with Amit Maity unbeaten on 18 off 12.
For Indians, Gupta took two wickets for 25 runs, while Ajay Khubani (1/10), Haresh Balan Nair (1/22) and Sagar (1/41) took one wicket each. Sagar also ran out Khar at a key moment.
Parihar bowled two tight overs for just nine runs, and the Indians held their nerve at the end despite giving away 19 wides. His match-winning knock, along with an economical spell of 2-0-9-0, earned him the POM award.
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