Dharamsala: Kings XI Punjab kept their faint hopes of making the play-offs alive by beating Delhi Daredevils in the Indian Premier League here yesterday.
Contributions from skipper Adam Gilchrist (42), Shaun Marsh (45) and David Miller (44 not out) ensured Punjab post 171 for four. The bowlers were able to restrict Delhi to 164 for seven in the first of the two matches to be played at the picturesque HPCA Stadium. The performance of young pacer Sandeep Sharma (3/23) stood out.
Punjab remain sixth in the standings with 14 points and need to win their next match here against the Mumbai Indians to have any chance of progressing in the tournament.
Delhi experienced a dreadful start to the chase with three batsmen back in the hut for 12 runs. Much of the damage was done by Sharma, who struck twice in the fourth over, getting Irfan Pathan and David Warner caught behind off successive out-swingers.
The recovery task was with captain Jayawardene (39) and Virender Sehwag (30), who came out to bat in the middle order.
IANS
