The Legends League Cricket 2023 kicked off on March 10 in Doha. A total of three teams will compete in the league over the course of 10 days for the title. All games will be played at the West End Park International Cricket Stadium in Doha.
The opening game of the competition saw the Asia Lions take on the India Maharajas. It was a close-fought contest and the Asia Lions emerged victorious to get off to a winning start. They grabbed two points and started their campaign on a positive note. They have taken their net run rate to +0.450.
With this win, the Lions have grabbed two points and jumped to the top of the points table. The India Maharajas didn’t have the best of starts to the competition and have slipped to the bottom of the points table. The World Giants are yet to take the field in the tournament so far and are placed in second position in the points table.
Misbah-ul-Haq helps the Asia Lions get off to a winning start
Asia Lions skipper Shahid Afridi won the toss and opted to bat first. Upul Tharanga scored 40 at the top of the order and Misbah-ul-Haq smashed 73 off 50 balls to take his side to 165 at the end of their 20 overs. The India Maharajas picked up six wickets in total, with Stuart Binny and Parvinder Awana finishing with two each.
In reply, skipper Gautam Gambhir scored 54 while opening the batting but lacked support from the other end. The other batters failed to contribute as they finished their innings on 156/8 to lose the game by nine runs. Sohail Tanvir bowled beautifully and picked up three wickets which helped them defend the total successfully.
It was a good all-round effort from the Asia Lions and it helped them get off to a winning start to the competition. India Maharajas will face the World Giants in their next outing on Saturday (March 11) and will have to bring out their A-game to turn the tables around.