- By Namrata Vijay
- Mon, 01 Sep 2025 09:34 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
DPL 2025: West Delhi Lions had won the Delhi Premier League title comprehensively as they had beaten Central Delhi Kings by six wickets on Sunday. Captain Nitish Rana yet again stood up for the team by scoring a match-winning knock of 79 runs and taking the team across the line.
While chasing a target of 174 runs, the Lions suffered early blows as Central Delhi Kings bowlers Simarjeet Singh and Arun Pundir struck quickly and left them tottering at 48/3 within five overs. The pressure of performing in the summit clash was quite evident, but skipper Rana rose to the occasion when the team needed him the most. Post his on-field heated exchange with Digvesh Rathi during their last game, Rana maintained his composure during the final. Along with Mayank Gusain, he stitched a partnership of 42 runs and helped the team bounce back. Tejas Baroka then dismissed Gusain, but till then, the captain had already dominated the match.
Rana was then assisted by Hritik Shokeen, and the duo made sure that they didn't lose any more wickets. Although Hritik scored a gritty knock of 42 runs, it was Ranam who batted aggressively by smashing fours constantly. This unbeaten partnership didn't just take the Kings' bowlers to the cleaners but also took the team across the line.
During the first innings, the Central Delhi Kings also made a brilliant comeback after a disappointing start and posted a respectable target of 173 runs.
Their top order collapsed as the West Delhi bowlers took wickets at regular intervals. They were tottering at 78/6, and the West Delhi Lions were in a commanding position.
But then the tide of the match turned after Yugal Saini and Pranshu Vijayran came into bat. This pair showed their grit and determination by playing shots smartly and also built a gritty partnership of 78 runs for the seventh wicket.
Yugal scored a brilliant knock of 65 runs off 48 balls and also hit boundaries consistently.
Pranshu also played the role of an aggressor by scoring 50 runs off just 24 balls. His brilliant stroke play during the death overs made sure that the Kings just didn't bounce back, but also piled the pressure on the Lions.
Manan Bhardwaj was the pick among the West Delhi bowlers as he registered match-winning figures of 2/11 in the three overs that he bowled. Shivank Vashisht was brilliant too, as he took two wickets and conceded just 12 runs, whereas captain Nitish Rana also made a significant contribution by registering figures of 16/1 in the 4 overs that he bowled.