Sport
Raza helps Punjab down Chennai in last-ball IPL thriller
Zimbabwe batsman Sikandar Raza helped Punjab Kings pull off a stunning chase to edge out Chennai Super Kings by four wickets in a last-ball Indian Premier League thriller on Sunday.
Chasing 201 for victory, Liam Livingstone (40), Sam Curran (29) and Jitesh Sharma (21) played attacking cameos before Pakistan-born Raza sealed the win with his unbeaten 13 in Chennai, AFP reported.
Sri Lanka fast bowler Matheesha Pathirana was tasked with bowling the final over, with Punjab needing nine to win. Raza got three runs off the final ball, his arms outstretched in celebration.
Punjab moved to fifth in the 10-team table, one below Chennai. Holders Gujarat Titans top the standings.
Devon Conway’s 92 off 52 balls proved to be in vain after the left-handed New Zealand opener steered Chennai to 200-4, having elected to bat first.
Livingstone and the left-handed Curran, who became the most expensive player in the tournament’s history at $2.23 million, revived the chase after Punjab fell to 94-3.
They put on 57 off 33 balls before Livingstone departed and Curran was bowled by Pathirana, called “Baby Malinga” for a slinging action similar to that of countryman Lasith Malinga.
Wicketkeeper-batsman Jitesh took Punjab closer in his 10-ball blitz before he fell to Tushar Deshpande, who took three wickets, but Raza held firm.
Punjab skipper Shikhar Dhawan (28) and opening partner Prabhsimran Singh (42) got the chase going in a quickfire 50-run stand but the team wobbled once the two departed.
Earlier, Conway laid the foundations of Chennai’s total in an 86-run opening stand with Ruturaj Gaikwad.
He reached his fifty — his fifth in the last six innings — in 30 balls with a boundary off Raza as he put up another attacking stand with Shivam Dube, who hit 28.
But it was skipper M.S. Dhoni’s sixes off the final two balls bowled by Curran that brought the house down at the Chepauk stadium, as the old warhorse dispatched the ball over backward point and then a pull over deep mid-wicket.
The season is likely to be Dhoni’s last as a player for the four-time champions and the superstar cricketer is getting a rousing reception at every venue, with many fans turning up in Chennai’s yellow to cheer him on.
Abu Muslim Farah defeated Khurasan Faryab 2-0 in the 25th match of the sixth season of Afghanistan Champions League Roshan.
The match was played on Saturday at the Afghanistan Football Federation Stadium in Kabul.
Both teams pushed for an opening goal in the first half, but neither side managed to find the net, and the teams went into the break goalless.
Just two minutes into the second half, Abu Muslim Farah broke the deadlock to take a 1-0 lead.
Alireza Panahi later doubled Abu Muslim Farah’s advantage, sealing a 2-0 victory for the Farah side.
Abu Muslim Farah committed 13 fouls and received two yellow cards, while Khorasan Faryab committed seven fouls and received one yellow card.
Matches from the sixth season of the Roshan Afghanistan Champions League are being broadcast live and exclusively on Ariana Television.
Omar Zawak Herat secured a 1-0 victory over Toofan Herat in the 24th match of the sixth season of Afghanistan Champions League Roshan in Kabul.
The match was played on Saturday at the Afghanistan Football Federation Stadium.
Both sides created scoring opportunities in the first half, but neither team managed to find the net before the break.
Omar Zawak Herat broke the deadlock in the 86th minute when Shadab Malikzadah scored with a fine strike to give his side the lead.
Toofan Herat committed eight fouls and received two yellow cards, while Omar Zawak Herat recorded six fouls and received one yellow card and one red card.
Toofan Herat will face Aino Mina Kandahar on September 29, while Omar Zawak Herat will take on Abu Muslim Farah on September 30.
Matches from the sixth season of the Roshan Afghanistan Champions League are being broadcast live on Ariana Television.
Afghanistan are set to face India in the Asian Games cricket quarter-finals after Saturday’s rain-hit match between Nepal and Japan confirmed the Pool A standings.
The quarter-final between India and Afghanistan is scheduled to take place on September 28 in Nisshin, Japan.
Nepal secured first place in the group after Japan’s chase was washed out. Nepal had scored 149 runs for four wickets in 15 overs after being sent in to bat, but persistent rain prevented Japan from starting its innings.
The result saw Nepal advance as Pool A winners, with Afghanistan joining them in the quarter-finals as the other qualifying team. Nepal will face Sri Lanka in the quarter-finals.
Japan have been eliminated from the tournament.
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