Lumbini Lions has registered its first win in the ongoing Nepal Premier League (NPL) 2024 by defeating Chiwan Rhinos by 33 runs.
Lumbini restricted Chitwan to 134 runs while the latter was chasing the 168-run target.
To restrict Chitwan from reaching the target, captin Rohit Paudel took the highest 4 wickeets giving away17 runs followed by Ramon Simmonds with 2 wickets. Similarly, Saad Bin Zafar and Abhishesh Gautam claimed 1 wicket each for Lumbini.
Luc Benkenstein's 31-run score was the highest for Chitwan. Benkenstein hit 3 fours and 1 six. Similarly, Nar Sarki took 22 runs followed by captain Kushal Malla with 20 runs while Rijan Dhakal contributed 15 runs.
Likewise, Ravi Bopara and Santosh Karki collected 12 and 10 runs, respevtively. The other batsmen could not achieve double digit runs.
Earlier, invited to bat first after losing the toss at the TU Cricket Ground in Kirtipur, , Lumbini notched up 167 runs losing 7 wickets in the allotted 20 overs, with the help of captain Rohit Paudel's excellent batting. He hit 6 fours and 5 sixes off 57 deliveries.
Similarly, Saad Bin Zafar made 52 runs while Arjun Saud and Tom Moores hit 15 and 10 runs, respectively. The other batsmen could not achieve double digit runs.
In reply, Rijan Dhakal took 3 wickets while Kushal Malla and Ranjit Kumar grabbed 1 wicket each.
With this, Chitwan has won three matches and lost two out of five matches played so far.
Chitwan had defeated Kathmandu Gurkhas by 5 wickets in the first match, Pokhara Avengers by 87 runs in the second match and Sudurpaschim Royals by 33 runs in the fourth match. Similarly, it lost to Karnali Yaks by 6 wickets in the third match and to Lumbini Lions by 33 runs in the fifth match.
On the other hand, this is the first victory ever registered by Lumbini in the ongoing NPL. Out of five matches played so far, it has lost four matches. Lumbini lost to Biratnagar by 2 wickets in the first match, Pokhara by 10 wickets in the second match, Sudurpaschim by 45 runs in the third match and faced a 1-run defeat at the hands of Janakpur in the fourth match.
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