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Everest Premier League 2021| Final: Chitwan Tigers and Pokhara Rhinos fight it out for the title

The Everest Premier League 2021, which finally took place after two seasons of non-engagement in 2019 and 2020 due to various reasons including the Covid-19 pandemic, has now reached its penultimate destination with the final match of the season to be played on October 8 between Chitwan Tigers and Pokhara Rhinos at the Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground in Kirtipur, Kathmandu. 

The league has been marred by rain disruptions, which have resulted in a few washouts and few other games being decided through the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method. However, crossing all such hurdles and earning important victories, Pokhra and Chitwan towns made it to the final. Here’s a look at how they reached the final 

Chitwan Tigers road to the EPL 2021 Final

In their first-ever match this season, the Tigers beat Biratnagar Warriors by two wickets courtesy of a composed innings by Rajesh Pulami as they chased down 152. While their next game against the Bhairahawa Gladiators was abandoned due to rain, the Tigers came back to win their next game as well. 

This three-wicket win was against Kathmandu Kings XI who had players like Afghan Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Zimbabwe’s Ryan Burl and Nepal’s own superstar Sandeep Lamichhane. From close wins, the Tigers showed their prowess in the next game and beat Pokhara Rhinos by nine wickets. In this Afghan wicketkeeper batter, Mohammad Shehzad shone for Tigers with the bat. 

In their fifth game, the Tigers beat defending champions Lalitpur Patriots to top the table. But the sixth match, which was actually the replay of the second game, was postponed due to the wet outfield Tigers somewhat lost the plot as they were beaten by Gladiators by six wickets. 

But even after that loss, they finished at the top of the six-team points tables and in Qualifier 1, beat Pokhara Rhinos, once again by nine wickets to advance to the final. 

Chitwan Tigers: Players to watch out in the final

Mohammad Shahzad

The funky Afghan wicket-keeper who entered the international arena on his ability to strike the ball mighty hard has been out of the national set-up for quite a long now. But his ability and skills in the shortest format of the game are still recognisable and Chitwan signed him as their overseas player for that reason. 

He has proved the signing right becoming the leading run-getter this season. The 33-year-old who still harbours hopes of a national call up has scored 196 runs with an average of 39.20 and a strike rate of 132 with 63* against Pokhra Rhinos being his best. Facing the Rhinos again, he would fancy his chances of taking his team home once again. 

Sagar Dhakal

While it has been Sehzad with the bat, with the ball, Sagar Dhakal has been the crusader for the Tigers. The 19-year-old left-arm orthodox bowler has actually been the leader of the pack that combines Karim Janat, Shahab Alam and Kamal Singh Airee. 

While Dhakal has 13 wickets to his kitty in six innings with an average of 9.46 and an economy rate of 5.34, the rest three have together picked up 25 wickets. This quartet has been the reason for the Tigers’ success in this league so far. 

Pokhara Rhinos road to the EPL 2021 Final

Pokhara Rhinos finished the league stage with an equal number of points as Bhairahawa Gladiators. The net run rate of Gladiators was better than Rhinos, but since Rhinos had won more matches, they were controversially given the second spot in the Points Table. 

In the league stage, the team from Pokhara won their three games, one game was abandoned due to bad weather and lost only against the Tigers, who they would also be facing in the Final. 

In Qualifier 1, they once again lost to the Tigers and by the same margin as they had in the league stage. In Qualifier-2, the Rhinos came back and beat Gladiators courtesy of a great all-around showing by their Sri Lankan import Sahan Arachchige to qualify for the Final. 

Pokhara Rhinos: Players to watch out in the final

Sahan Arachchige

The all-rounder has been a breath of fresh air in the Pokhara Rhinos squad. With 143 runs at an average of 47.66 and strike rate of 126 and four wickets to his kitty at 17.50 apiece, the Sri Lankan has raised hopes for the Pokhra team going into the Final. Most importantly, with his performance in the Qualifier-2, it has become clear that he is a big match player and if found in the right form, the 25-year-old could very well be the game-changer in the final. 

Richard Levi

A seasoned professional, the South African has managed to prove over the years that he is capable of changing matches single-handedly. What Mohammad Shahzad is to Chitwan Tigers, Levi could very well be for Rhinos. With an experience of more than 100 First Class, List A and more than 200 T20 games playing around the world, the 33-year-old packs a heavy punch, which might land in the right place in the final. 

In the league so far, the Proteas has scored 155 runs, striking at more than 150. His average of 25 shows that he has been consistent as well. 

What's at stake?

Both the teams have reached the final of this top-rated competition in Nepalese cricket for the first time. Thus a title win for either of them would do a world of good regarding competition in the league and also with respect to building fan bases. Chitwan have beaten Pokhara twice in the league and Qualifier and that too by a huge margin. But the final is altogether a different ball game. Can the Rhinos turn it on in the match that matters the most? 

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IPL 2021 | SRH vs MI: Mumbai still in hunt for a Playoffs place, all they need is a miracle against Sunrisers

The uniqueness of the Indian Premier League is that any team can beat any other team on a given day and maybe that is what has kept Mumbai Indians, the defending champions alive and still hopeful for a place in the Playoffs, even as the tournament heads to its last day of the league stages on October 8. Although the chances of Mumbai making it to the Playoffs is almost negligible with Kolkata Knight Riders beating Rajasthan Royals in their last match. But mathematically, the Rohit Sharma led side still has a chance. Mumbai Indians' chance of Playoffs qualification The chance is very simple. Win the toss and bat first. If they lose the toss, the game is done and dusted there itself as the only chance of MI making it to the Playoffs is by winning their last match against Sunrisers by a margin of 171 runs or more. To avail that chance, it needs to put in a performance far greater than their last one against Rajasthan Royals, where they chased down the total in only 8.2 overs to make themselves even a contender for the Playoffs. If MI are unable to win by a margin of 171 runs or more, their net run rate which is at -0.048 currently, will not be able to get past KKR’s +0.587 and thus even if Mumbai wins the game, KKR on the virtue of a better net run rate will make it to the Playoffs. What is in it for SRH? While this is about Mumbai, what about Hyderabad? What are they looking for? Having trashed the party of Royal Challengers Bangalore, dashing almost all their hopes of finishing in the top two, the bottom-placed unit would look to rally one last time and finish the dismal season with a final hurray. They can be way more dangerous than playing an already qualified team and who knows better than RCB about it? The Hyderabad side has nothing to lose and in that case, Mumbai, which has everything to lose might become vulnerable, giving a chance for Kane Williamson’s men to strike hard. Sunrisers Hyderabad vs Mumbai Indians: Details Match number: 55 Date and Time: October 08, 2021, 07:30 pm IST (10:00 GMT), 06:00 pm Local, 02:00 pm GMT Venue: Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi Broadcast and Livestream: Star Sports and Hotstar Pitch Report The pitches throughout UAE haven’t really been supportive of batting as it was the last time around in 2020. The squares have dried up with a lot of cricket having been already played. Thus in this game also, any score around and above 150-160 would be par and the team defending should look to make it as tough as possible for the team chasing. Weather Forecast The temperatures would be in the mid-thirties and humidity would keep on increasing as the match progresses. There might be dew later on and thus, any team winning the toss would look to bowl first. Team News Sunrisers Hyderabad Since Hyderabad won a game after a very long time playing one combination, it would be very difficult to imagine them abandoning altogether or even making the slightest of changes to it until and unless there is any injury scare. Probable XI Jason Roy, Wriddhiman Saha (wk), Kane Williamson (c), Priyam Garg, Abdul Samad, Abhishek Sharma, Jason Holder, Rashid Khan, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul, Umran Malik Mumbai Indians Mumbai on the other hand seemed to have found their mojo back with the introduction of Jimmy Neesham and Ishan Kishan in the squad in place of Krunal Pandya and Quinton de Kock respectively. Jayant Yadav’s introduction is a blessing in disguise considering that he can bowl very well on the dry pitches of Abu Dhabi. Thus no changes are in sight in this Playing XI either. Probable XI Rohit Sharma (c), Ishan Kishan (wk), Suryakumar Yadav, Saurabh Tiwary, Kieron Pollard, Hardik Pandya, James Neesham, Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jayant Yadav, Jasprit Bumrah, Trent Boult CE XI Fantasy Team Wicketkeeper Ishan Kishan Batters Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, Jason Roy, Kane Williamson All-rounders Jason Holder, James Neesham Bowlers Nathan Coulter-Nile, Jasprit Bumrah, Rashid Khan, Umran Malik Vice-Captain Jason Holder Captain Ishan Kishan

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IPL 2021 | KKR vs RR: What Experts Said after Kolkata script 'wonderful turnaround'

Kolkata Knight Riders bowling unit was on fire against Rajasthan Royals on Thursday in Sharjah after they bundled out the Royals for 85 to win the match by 86 runs. Chasing 172, the RR side had a dismal start to the proceedings after losing opener Yashasvi Jaiswal in the first over for a duck. The Rajasthan side kept losing wickets at quick succession and were left tottering at 35/7 to eventually get bowled out. For RR, it was only Rahul Tewatia who held the fort from one end and chipped in with a 36-ball 44 which included a couple of maximums and five fours during the course of his innings but the left-hander’s efforts weren’t enough to take his team over the line. With this defeat, RR have also bowed out of the tournament. For KKR, Shivam Mavi scalped a four-wicket haul at the cost of 21 runs in just over three overs while Lockie Ferguson returned with a fascinating figures of 3/18 in 4. Shakib Al Hasan and Varun Chakravarthy picked up a wicket apiece. Earlier, in the day, KKR were off to a good start after Shubman Gill and Venkatesh Iyer stitched a 79-run stand for the first wicket before Iyer was out for 38 off 35. But Gill continued with his brilliant batting and notched up 56 off 44 deliveries to help his side put 171/4 in 20 overs on the board. Chetan Sakariya returned with an economical figures of 1/23 in 4 overs for RR. RR captain Sanju Samson suggested that the track was favourable enough to chase this kind of a target but there was a lapse in the execution by the team. “I think to be very honest it was a better wicket. It was staying a little low with the new ball but it was a better wicket. 171 was chaseable on this wicket. I think we wanted to get a good start. We needed a powerful powerplay. We wanted to execute whatever we planned but we didn't execute,” he said during the post-match presentation. KKR skipper Eoin Morgan lavished praise on Shubman Gill and Iyer for their efforts in the second half of the tournament. “Losing the toss and having to set was a difficult challenge. Venkatesh Iyer and Shubman Gill have been the shining lights for us in the second half. I thought we were brilliant to take the opportunities,” he said. Experts’ Opinion Commentator Harsha Bhogle lauded KKR for the way they turned the table for themselves in this edition of the IPL. “KKR came to the UAE with very little chance of qualifying for the play-offs. Now they are marching there. It has been a truly wonderful turnaround,” he tweeted. Journalist Ayaz Memon praised KKR for their all-round performance. “Superb all round performance by KKR and terrible one by RR. Don’t know the mathematical possibility of MI making it to the play-offs, but must be tending towards zero I would imagine. KKR’s surge from a near hopeless position after phase 1 is a remarkable story,” he wrote on Twitter. Former India bowler Irfan Pathan praised KKR for the way they have fared in the second leg of the IPL. “This is brilliant cricket from KKR, UAE leg has been fruitful for them. #IPL2O21,” he tweeted. Former India pacer RP Singh hailed Shivam Mavi for showing his potential in an important game. “KKR you did it in style! Der aaye per kya durust aaye! Shivam Mavi chose a very important game to show his potential,” he wrote on Twitter. KKR are likely to make it to the playoffs as the fourth side. The Mumbai Indians need to defeat Sunrisers Hyderabad by a huge margin of around 170 odd runs.