Bhubaneswar: All-rounder Lalit Yadav (3/10) claimed three wickets with his off-breaks as Delhi notched up a comprehensive 20-run win over Odisha in their final Group E match to qualify for the super league stage of the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy in Surat Monday.
Electing to bat, Delhi posted 149 for six and then dismissed Odisha for 129 in 18.1 overs to complete the win and top Group E with 22 points from seven matches.
Going through a rough patch, Shikhar Dhawan top-scored with a 33-ball 35 which comprised three fours and a six. However his struggle was apparent against an unfancied Odisha attack. He failed to get going.
Earlier, Delhi batsmen, including opener Hiten Dalal (20) and first-down Dhruv Shorey (26), got starts but none could convert them into big scores but they did enough to help the team post a decent score on board.
For Odisha, Abhishek Raut (2/21) took two wickets, while Govind Poddar (1/18), Suryakant Pradhan (1/31), Pappu Roy (1/35) and Subham Nayak (1/29) accounted for one wicket each.
Skipper Govind was the most economical of the lot going for just 18 runs in his four overs. Govind who opened the bowling kept India opener Dhawan in a tight leash.
Defending the total, Yadav was ably supported by Pawan Negi (2/38) and Nitish Rana (2/6) as the trio derailed Odisha’s chase. Odisha had a disastrous start and were looking down the barrel at 36 for 5 in 7.2 overs.
Down the order, Suryakant Pradhan smashed a 20-ball 48 laced with six hits to the fence but it was not enough.
Brief scores: Delhi 149 for 6 (Shikhar Dhawan 35; Abhishek Raut 2/21) beat Odisha 129 in 18.1 overs (Suryakant Pradhan 48; Lalit Yadav 3/10).
