Kevin’s 76 and Kaushik’s all-round show helps Star Eleven wins the finals of Palghar Dhanu T20 Premier League’19

By CricketGraph Editor Last updated Apr 22, 2019

Star Eleven batting first at the PDTSA ground were off to a flying start with Kaushik Chikhlikhar hitting a quick half century. Kevin Almeida coming at no.4 went in the acceleration mode from the word Go hitting a blazing 76* off just 32 balls which had 5 fours and 7 biggies in it staying unbeaten till the end. Kevin took minimal time to change gears as he toiled with the bowlers while opener Kaushik also scored an equally impressive 36 ball 56 (8 fours, 1 six). The rest of the batters chipped in as Star Eleven reached a decent total of 204/5 in 20 overs.

Chasing 205 in the finals of any T20 tournament is a difficult task as there is lot of pressure while chasing. Azad Strikers who were 19/ 3 at one stage got back into the game with opener Aakarshit Gomel continuing from where he left behind hitting back to back half century. Gomel took just 32 balls to score a brillaint 65 which had 12 fours in it while Karan who came at no.5 also scored a brilliant 51 off 35 setting the tone for a perfect chase. Gomel and Karan even stitched an almost match winning stand of 88 runs in just 42 balls. What’s more the hopes of winning were further raised when Prasad Patil coming at no.8 thrashed the bowlers in every corner of the ground hitting a brutal 24 ball 47.

However, despite a fightback by the team, their rest of the batsmen failed to convert their score in double digits. The Rising Eleven bowlers made a quick comeback taking wickets at regular intervals. Rakesh Prabhu with 3/30 in 4 overs and Kaushik with 2/33 in 4 overs were the pick of the bowlers coming up with important wickets at crunch situations.

Azad Strikers reached a score of 187/9 in 20 overs as Star Eleven won the match by 17 runs.