DHARAMSHALA (India), May 21: Shikhar Dhawan cracked an unbeaten 95 and Amit Mishra took a hat-trick as Deccan Chargers knocked Kings XI Punjab out of the Indian Premier League with an 82-run victory on Saturday.

Opener Dhawan, who hit one six and 14 fours in his 57-ball knock, put on 131 for the opening wicket with Ravi Teja (60) as Deccan made 198-2 before bowling Punjab out for 116.

Skipper Adam Gilchrist top-scored with a 37-ball 51 for Punjab, who put in a below-par batting and fielding performance. The captain, who hit two sixes and six fours, added 61 for the third wicket with Dinesh Karthik (11).

Deccan virtually wrapped up the match when Australian paceman Daniel Christian dismissed Gilchrist and Karthik in the space of three balls to reduce Punjab to 84-4 in 11 overs.

Leg-spinner Mishra’s hat-trick came in his third over when he removed Ryan McLaren, Mandeep Singh and Ryan Harris to eventually finish with 4-9.

Chennai (18 points), Bangalore (17), Kolkata (16) and Mumbai (16) have now qualified for the play-offs. They are followed by Punjab (14), Rajasthan (13), Deccan (12), Kochi (12), Pune (eight) and Delhi (eight).

Deccan, who finished with six wins in 14 matches, were already out of contention while Punjab needed a victory in their last match to keep their hopes alive.

Meanwhile, Australian leg-spin wizard Shane Warne quit professional cricket on Friday after leading Rajasthan Royals to a 10-wicket win over Mumbai Indians in his farewell IPL match.

Rajasthan, already out of contention, rode on Shane Watson’s all-round show (3-19 and 89 not out) to achieve a 134-run target and finish their campaign with six victories in 14 games of the Twenty20 tournament.

Watson smashed six sixes and nine fours in his explosive 47-ball knock, while Rahul Dravid remained unbeaten with a 32-ball 43.

A capacity crowd at the Wankhede Stadium also witnessed Warne’s last battle with another legend, Indian batting superstar Sachin Tendulkar, their first encounter being in the Sydney Test in 1992.

Skipper Tendulkar was batting on 18 after having survived two confident lbw appeals, when Warne came on to bowl in the ninth over.

The Australian conceded just two singles to Tendulkar in his opening over and five off as many deliveries in his next, which included two dot-balls.

When Warne came for his third over, Tendulkar (31) had already been dismissed, caught by Watson at third-man while attempting to cut seamer Amit Singh.

The Australian conceded just five runs in that over and a fan flashed a placard, reading “Bowling Shane, thanks for the magic Warnie”.

Warne’s fourth and last over in competitive cricket was eventful as he nearly grabbed a wicket with his first delivery but Ashok Menaria dropped top-scorer Rohit Sharma (58) at long-on.

He did not have to wait long for his first success as he had Sharma stumped with his fourth delivery, with the batsman losing his bat in the process while trying to attempt a big shot. Warne finished with 1-30.

Warne’s team-mates then gave him a guard of honour, standing in two lines to salute the legend.

Warne, who quit international cricket in 2007, spent four seasons with Rajasthan who will always remember his contribution as a spinner, captain, coach and mentor.

He led a bunch of no-hopers to the title triumph in the inaugural edition in 2008 before eventually ending his IPL career with 57 wickets in 55 matches.

Results: Deccan Chargers beat Kings XI Punjab XI by 82 runs. DECCAN CHARGERS 198-2 in 20 overs (S. Dhawan 95 not out, R. Teja 60); KINGS XI PUNJAB 116 in 19 overs (A.C. Gilchrist 51; A. Mishra 4-9, D.T. Christian 2-21). Rajasthan Royals beat Mumbai Indians by 10 wickets.

MUMBAI INDIANS 133-5 in 20 overs (R.G. Sharma 58, S.R. Tendulkar 31, K.A. Pollard 20; S.R. Watson 3-19, S.K. Warne 1-30); RAJASTHAN ROYALS 134-0 in 13.1 overs (S.R. Watson 89 not out, R. Dravid 43 not out).—AFP

Opinion

A long week

A long week

There’s some wariness about the excitement surrounding this moment of international glory.

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