Pokhara, October 28

Expert Dhangadhi Blues and Butwal Blasters registered victories in the Namaste Pokhara Premier League here today.

Blues defeated Biratnagar Titans by 78 runs, while Blasters saw off Pokhara Paltan by 33 runs for their second straight victory.

Blasters lead the six-team table with four points, while three teams — Blues, Hulas Kathmandu Royals and Paltan — have two each. Titans, who faced their second successive defeat today, and Chitwan Rhinos are yet to open their accounts.

In the day’s first match at the Pokhara Stadium grounds, Blues were all out for 182 runs in 20 overs before packing Titans for 104 runs with 20 balls to spare. Blues lost openers Sandeep Sunar (nine) and Dan Lawrence (two) of England with just 13 runs on the board and wicketkeeper Dilip Nath (eight) was also dismissed cheaply.

Skipper Dipendra Singh Airee and Peter Trego of England revived the innings with a 60-run partnership for the fourth wicket. And Saurav Khanal played a 13-ball cameo scoring 41 runs to guide the team to huge total. Trego top scored with a quick fire 53 off 38 balls that included two boundaries and two sixes, while Airee struck four fours and a six in his 19-ball 29. Khanal was on fire smashing two boundaries and five sixes in his whirlwind knock.

Jitendra Mukhiya was the pick of the Titans bowlers taking 4-49, while Kishore Mahato, Sunil Dhamala, Sandeep Lamichhane and Muhammad Zaid Alam picked one wicket each.

In reply, only Sunil Dhamala was the top scorer for Titans with 21 off 14 balls that included four fours. Muhammad Zaid Alam (19), Andrew Subikshan (18) and Lamichhane (10) were the other batsmen who scored in double figures.

Lawrence returned with 3-17 from four overs, while Dipendra Singh Airee took 2-27 for Blues. Man-of-the-match Trego, Kamal Singh Airee and Robeen Chhetri claimed one wicket each.

In another match, Butwal Blasters posted 150-7 in 20 overs before the home team managed 117-9. Bhim Sarki top scored for Blasters with 54 off 46 balls with the help of two fours and three sixes, while Rohan Mustafa of the UAE struck three boundaries and two sixes in his 35-ball 45. The duo also shared a 73-run partnership for the third wicket.

Skipper Sompal Kami hammered two fours and a six in his eight-ball 22, while Siddhant Lohani scored 11-ball 13 with the help of a six. Mohammad Naveed took 3-20 for Paltan, while Mehboob Alam, Lalit Narayan Rajbanshi and skipper Sharad Vesawkar claimed one wicket each.

In reply, Paltan never recovered after losing openers Kushal Bhurtel and Aasif Sheikh with 31 runs on the board. They lost the last seven wickets for 47 runs. Sheikh was the top scorer with 15-ball 20 that included four boundaries, while skipper Vesawkar was the next best with 19. Blasters skipper Sompal Kami, Lalit Singh Bhandari, Bipin Khatri and Rohan Mustafa took two wickets each, while Sagar Pun claimed one. Mustafa was named the man of the match.

On Monday, Biratnagar Titans will play against Hulas Kathmandu Royals, while Chitwan Rhinos will face Pokhara Paltan.