Shahrukh Khan wasn’t at his best in the first six matches of TNPL-10, but it seemed the Vida Kovai Kings skipper was saving his best for the last. M.
In a must-win final league game for his side, the swashbuckling batter unfurled his full repertoire of bludgeoning strokes, smashing an unbeaten 18-ball 59 (4×4, 6×6), to set up Kovai Kings’ thumping 85-run victory (DLS method) over Dindigul Dragons here at the MAC Stadium on Friday.
Lokeshwar got the team off strongly, collecting 56 in the PowerPlay. With Kings at 96 for three in 12.1 overs, a heavy downpour stopped proceedings for 75 minutes. Once the game resumed – truncated to 16 overs per side – Shahrukh wasted no time in raining sixes as the two-time champion plundered 75 runs in the remaining 3.5 overs to amass 171 for three.
Put in to bat, Kovai Kings openers S. Radhakrishnan and S.
Later in the evening, Trichy Grand Cholas became the first team to qualify for the Playoffs, beating Chepauk Super Gillies by 14 runs and moving to the top of the table with 10 points. Opting to bat, Grand Cholas made 191 for seven, riding on half-centuries from S. Shyam Sundar and Sanjay Yadav.