IVPL: Asela Gunaratne’s ton in vain as VVIP Uttar Pradesh beat Red Carpet Delhi by 29 runs

Greater Noida (Uttar Pradesh) [India], February 26: Anshul Kapoor and Pawan Negi smashed fifties while skipper Suresh Raina scored 34 in 21 balls as VVIP Uttar Pradesh defeated Red Carpet Delhi by 29 runs in the fifth match of the Indian Veteran Premier League (IVPL) here at the Shaheed Vijay Singh Pathik Sports Complex in Greater Noida on Sunday.

VVIP Uttar Pradesh scored 220/3 in the allotted 20 overs and then restricted Red Carpet Delhi on 191/9 . Anshul Kapoor scored 63 in 38 balls and Pawan Negi slammed 69 runs in 43 balls.

In the last over 35 runs were required but Red Carpet Delhi scored 5 runs and ended their innings at 191/9. Pawan Negi was named as the Player of the Match.

Put into bat first, VVIP Uttar Pradesh got off to a firing start scoring 38 runs in three overs. Bhanu Seth smashed 31 runs in 11 balls. Anshul Kapoor and Pawan Negi then carried the innings and took the score to 130 inside 13 overs.

As Anshul Kapoor got out, skipper Raina came to the crease to bat amid the loud cheers from the fans who were eager to see the southpaw bat. Raina scored 34 runs in 21 balls and took VVIP Uttar Pradesh to 220/3 in 20 overs.

Chasing 221, Red Carpet Delhi got off to a bad start as Richard Levi and skipper Herschelle Gibbs were dismissed cheaply. But Asela Gunaratne slammed 106 in 55 balls to revive some hopes. Ashley Nurse also scored a quick fire 32 in 16 balls but their innings were not good enough to take Red Carpet Delhi over the line.

With this victory, VVIP Uttar Pradesh maintains its momentum and sets its sights on a showdown with Telangana Tigers on Monday, while Red Carpet Delhi looks to bounce back against Mumbai Champions on Tuesday.