New Delhi: West Delhi Lions booked their place in the final of the Delhi Premier League (DPL) with a dominant eight-wicket win over East Delhi Riders in Qualifier 2 at the Arun Jaitley Stadium here.
Chasing a modest 140-run target, the Lions crossed the finish line with ease in the 18th over, thanks to a composed knock from Ayush Doseja and a fluent innings from Nitish Rana on Saturday night.
The chase began on a shaky note with opener Ankit Kumar falling early to Rohit Yadav for 2. However, Krish Yadav (37 off 25) and Doseja steadied the innings with a 39-run stand for the second wicket.
Krish looked in fine touch, striking boundaries with ease, before he was dismissed by Mayank Rawat.
Doseja then found an able partner in Rana, as the pair built a solid partnership to help their team complete the task comfortably.
Doseja remained unbeaten on 54 off 49 balls, anchoring the chase, while Rana (45 not out off 26 balls) accelerated in his trademark fashion to seal the win in style.
Rawat was the standout bowler for East Delhi, returning figures of 1/19 in his four overs.
Earlier, put in to bat, East Delhi Riders struggled for momentum and could manage only 139/8 in their 20 overs.
The Lions struck early when Shubham Dubey dismissed Hardik Sharma for 1. Arpit Rana and Sujal Singh attempted to rebuild with a 40-run partnership, but Tishant Dabla broke through, sending Sujal back for 18.
Arpit carried on to complete a fighting 50 off 38 balls, but his dismissal to Dabla left the Riders reeling at 81/3.
Regular wickets pegged them back further, and despite a spirited 24 not out from Rounak Waghela in the death overs, they couldn’t push the total beyond 139.
The Lions’ bowling unit was clinical. Manan Bhardwaj was the pick of the attack with 3/22 in 4 overs, while Dabla chipped in with 2/18 in 3 overs. Anirudh Chowdhary also contributed with 2/28 in 3 overs, ensuring the Riders never found any rhythm.
With this commanding win, West Delhi Lions set up a blockbuster title clash against Central Delhi Kings.
