Prabhsimran hits second ton in Sher-e-Punjab league win

Prabhsimran Singh scored his second consecutive century as Jalandhar Warriors edged past Bathinda Royals by three runs in a thrilling last-ball finish match of the Sher-e-Punjab T20 League at the PCA IS Bindra Stadium, Mohali, today.

The Warriors posted 205 in 19.3 overs, with captain and wicketkeeper-batter Prabhsimran once again leading the way. The side was off to a shaky start and were reduced to 62/3. However, Prabhsimran then joined hands with Aryan Yadav to rebuild the innings. The two batters took the attack to the Bathinda bowlers and added 118 for the fourth wicket, giving Jalandhar the much-needed momentum.

Yadav played an aggressive knock of 39 off 19 balls before being dismissed. Prabhsimran (110 off 56 balls, with seven sixes and 10 boundaries) continued to dominate from the other end and brought up another brilliant century. However, he struggled to find enough support towards the end as Jalandhar kept losing wickets at regular intervals. Ashwani Kumar was the standout bowler for the bowling side, as he took the first hat-trick of the tournament.

Kumar dismissed Sukhdeep Bajwa off the final ball of the 17th over before removing Prabhsimran and Randeep Singh with the first two deliveries of the 19th over. He finished with excellent figures of 4/35 from his four overs.

Chasing 206, the Royals made a steady start as openers Rishabh Gupta and Harnoor Singh added 48 runs for the first wicket. Gurvinder Bhullar gave Jalandhar the first breakthrough by dismissing Rishabh for 17 off 17 balls. Harnoor then continued to keep the chase on track before he was dismissed for a well-made 44 off 29 balls.

Captain Uday Saharan took charge from there and played a brilliant innings, bringing up his half-century and keeping Bathinda in the hunt. Saharan was supported by Shahbaz Sandhu, who played an attacking knock and kept the scoreboard moving. The pair put the Jalandhar bowlers under pressure, although the required run rate continued to rise.

Jalandhar bowled an excellent penultimate over to bring the equation down to 18 from the final six balls. The Warriors were then put under further pressure when Sandhu was claimed by Randeep Singh off the very first ball of the last over. Sandhu scored 26 off 13 balls. However, Saharan refused to give up. He smashed a six and a four off consecutive deliveries to bring the equation down to just six runs from the final two balls.

Randeep then produced the crucial moment, trapping Saharan in front of the stumps at 86 off 43. With Bathinda needing six runs from the final ball, the pressure was firmly on the Royals. Randeep bowled a wide, leaving Bathinda with one legal delivery to score five runs. Kumar managed only two runs off the final ball, allowing Warriors to hold their nerves and seal a dramatic three-run victory.