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Champs thumps Giants

Vijay Lokapally

GURGAON: Mumbai Champs had looked lost and beaten right through its last five matches but it pulled off a face-saving 58-run victory over Delhi Giants in the Indian Cricket League at the Tau Devi Lal Stadium here on Thursday night. The win spoilt Giants’ aspirations for a semifinal berth — it is hopelessly placed with four points from six matches.

A victory target of 175 was hard to achieve for Giants once it lost openers Marvan Atapattu (13) and Mohnish Mishra (13) cheaply. Dhruv Mahajan and Syed Abbas Ali threw their bat around but the effort was too good to last against an attack that stuck to a disciplined line. Abbas’s 31 off 19 balls was a feeble resistance.

Jadhav excels

Champs owed a lot to former Maharashtra opener Dheeraj Jadhav. He stuck to his job well and his controlled aggression meant that Champs could recover from the two quick blows that it suffered at the top.

A 72-run partnership between Jadhav and Hasan Raza steadied the innings. Jadhav crafted a disciplined half-century, while Raza missed one by seven runs. Their good work was maintained by Ranjeet Khirid as Giants’ bowlers struggled to contain the opposition.

The action now shifts to Panchkula, near Chandigarh, with Chandigarh Lions meeting Dhaka Warriors on Friday.

The scores: Mumbai Champs 174 for four in 20 overs (Dheeraj Jadhav 59, Hasan Raza 43, Ranjeet Khirid 43) bt Delhi Giants 116 in 17.3 overs (Syed Abbas Ali 31, Avinash Yadav four for 18).

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