Kathmandu, December 19

Bhairahawa Gladiators defeated Chitwan Tigers by four wickets to advance to the second Qualifier of the TVS Everest Premier League here at the TU Stadium today.

Batting first, Tigers posted 139-8 in their allotted 20 overs before Gladiators raced to 142-6 with 10 balls to spare. Gladiators will now face Kathmandu Kings XI in the second Qualifier for a place in the final. Lalitpur Patriots advanced to the final with a last-ball one-run thrilling victory over Kings in yesterday’s first Qualifier.

Tigers lost both the openers Paul Stirling (18) and Sandeep Sunar (four) in the space of two balls, while skipper Prithu Baskota (naught) fell cheaply. At a time when JA Simpson (14) was dismissed in the ninth over, Tigers were reeling at 55-4.

Dipendra Singh Airee consolidated the innings with crucial partnerships, albeit not big ones. He added 20 runs with Bhim Sarki for the fifth wicket and shared another 20-run stand with George Scott for the sixth.  Airee then added another 31-run partnership with Kamal Singh Airee before being finally caught by Krishna Karki off Mohammad Naveed in the 19th over.

Airee brought up his half century, hitting six fours and a six in his 45-ball 56. Kamal Singh Airee struck two fours in his 11-ball 13. Naveed was the pick of the Gladiators bowlers taking 3-24, while Avinash Bohara claimed 2-13. Ryan ten Doeschate, Krishna Karki and Bhuwan Karki pocketed one wicket each.

In reply, Gladiators overcame early set back to record victory. They were reduced to 20-3 inside four overs before opener Pradeep Singh Airee and skipper Sharad Vesawkar revived the innings with a 56-run partnership for the fourth wicket. Airee hit six fours in his 38-ball 42, while Vesawkar scored 27-ball 29 that included three fours.

Gladiators lost three quick wickets to be 91-6 in 14 overs but Rohit Kumar Paudel and Kushal Malla took the team home without further loss adding 51 runs for the unbroken seventh wicket. Paudel remained unbeaten on 24 off 14 balls hitting two fours and a six, while Malla struck two each fours and sixes in his 13-ball 27 not out. Kamal Singh Airee took 3-26 for Tigers, while Lalit Singh Bhandari and Dipendra Singh Airee claimed one wicket apiece.