Shikhar Dhawan Delights Nepal Fans With A Blistering 72 In NPL 2024
Shikhar Dhawan plays a stellar knock against KG in NPL [Source: @newbusinessage/X.com]
Shikhar Dhawan, the much-loved star of the Nepal Premier League, experienced a mixed start to his campaign. After a not-so-good 14-run knock in his first match on Monday against the Janakpur Bolts, he roared back with a blistering knock of 72 runs against Kathmandu Gurkhas.
After winning the toss, KG elected to bowl first on Tribhuvan University International Cricket Ground. While Karnali Yak's opener Dev Khanal was gone for a duck, Shikhar Dhawan, known for his remarkable opening knocks, anchored the innings from one end while the other batters kept coming and falling one by one.
Dhawan's Responsible Knock Pushes KY Close To 150-Run Mark
Dhawan initially struggled, reaching 33 runs off 35 balls. However, he exploded in the final overs, smashing four fours and five sixes to finish with a rapid 72 runs in 51 balls. His responsible yet explosive innings pushed Karnali to a respectable total of 149/5 in 20 overs.
From KG's bowling end, Gerhard Erasmus was the pick of the bowlers as he scalped 2 wickets for 29 runs. Karan KC, Nathan Sowter and Dipesh Kandel also chipped in with 1 wicket each but failed to contain an explosive Dhawan who made it challenging for KG to chase what was once an easy total ahead of the final overs.
Though NPL is at its initial stage, Karnali Yaks currently sits at the second last position losing the first match that they played. Gaining momentum from Dhawan's knock, KY will look to seal the win against KG to move higher up the league table.