Everest Premier League 2021, Final: Airee, Sharki propel Chitwan Tigers win title

Chitwan Tigers clinched the fourth edition of the Everest Premier League with a four-wicket win against Pokhara Rhinos in the final. They bundled out Pokhara for 111 in 17.5 overs, and chased down the target with 25 balls to spare.

Asela Gunaratne top-scored with a 24-ball 34 in Pokhara’s total after they were asked to bat. Richard Levi (26 in 15 balls) got them off to a blistering start before he was undone by Karim Janat (2-15) in the fourth over.

At No. 6, Binod Bhandari (22 in 26) tried to steady the ship, but he received little support from the tail. As a result, Pokhara were skittled out for a paltry total. They were 94/4 at one point, and lost their last six wickets for 17 runs.

Kamal Airee did the most damage for Chitwan, with 4-20. Seekkuge Prasanna (2-13) and Janat were impressive as well.

Coming in the chase, Chitwan were reduced to 11/2, and then 20/3 inside four overs. Bhim Sharki (63 in 45) took charge from there, adding 54 with Dilip Nath (18), and another 23 with Rajesh Pulami (14) to take the game away from Pokhara. He fell to Kishore Mahato  (4-27) after levelling the score before Sompal Kami hit the winning four off the next ball in the 16th over to take Chitwan past the finishing line.

Brief Scores: Pokhara Rhinos 111 in 17.5 overs (Gunaratne  34; Airee 4-20) lost to Chitwan Tigers 114/6 in 15.5 overs (Sharki  63; Mahato 4-27) by 4 wickets with 25 balls to spare. Player of the Match: Kamal Airee. Player of the Tournament: Sagar Dhakal.