NEW DELHI: Ankit Kumar and Akhil Chaudhary starred as West Delhi Lions began their Delhi Premier League (DPL) campaign with a thumping 3-wicket win over North Delhi Strikers here at Shri Arun Jaitley Stadium.
West Delhi Lions were up against North Delhi Strikers in the 3rd match of the League on Sunday, 18th August.
North Delhi Strikers were restricted to 144/8 in the allotted 20 overs and West Delhi Lions chased down the target with 9 balls to spare. For West Delhi Lions, Akhil Chaudhary picked 4 wickets while Ankit Kumar slammed 39 runs in 15 balls.
"The team showed great resilience in both bowling and batting today. Our bowlers kept their nerve during the crucial death overs, and Ankit Kumar's explosive start set the tone for a strong chase. We are thrilled to start our DPL campaign on such a high note," Dr. Rajan Chopra, owner of West Delhi Lions said in a statement.
West Delhi Lions won the toss and elected to bowl first. North Delhi Strikers had a bad start as they lost the first wicket in the second over. The team tried to build a partnership were given regular blows by West Delhi Lions. After 15 overs, North Delhi Strikers were close to 120 and were cruising towards a big target. However, West Delhi Lions bowled some tight lengths in the death overs and restricted North Delhi Strikers to 144/8 in 20 overs.
Chasing 145, West Delhi Lions' Ankit Kumar went all guns blazing and smashed 4 fours and 3 sixes. He provided the West Delhi Lions with a great start as the side slammed 50 runs in the first 3 overs only.
But North Delhi Strikers came back in the game and dismissed three wickets as West Delhi Lions went from 52/0 to 74/3 in just 4 overs. Dev Lakra and Ekansh Dobal then built a partnership of 38 runs to keep West Delhi Lions in the chase.
In the end, skipper Hrithik Shokeen and Deepak Punia made sure that West Delhi Lions didn't face any more hiccups but just when 5 runs were required the side lost two more wickets. In the end, it was still a comfortable chase for West Delhi Lions.
West Delhi Lions will now lock horns with Purani Dilli 6 on Wednesday, 21 August.