Tamil Nadu eves edge Punjab

CHENNAI: Tamil Nadu eves edged past Punjab by 3 runs in their senior women's T20 clash at the MA Chidambaram Stadium here on Sunday. In this low-scoring encounter, the hosts were able to manage only 68 in their quota of 20 overs. Niranjana led the show with a knock of 17 for Tamil Nadu. For the visitors, Diksha (2 for 4), Sunita (2 for 18), Sneh Rana (2 for 10) and Neelam (2 for 15) were among the wickets.
In reply, Punjab were coasting along their target and were placed at 56 for 3 at the conclusion of 17 overs. That's when the home team turned things around. With just 13 needed off the last 18 deliveries, the visiting team went on to press the self-destruction mode. Punjab went on to lose six wickets in the space of 15 deliveries. There were three run outs and off-spinner Hemalatha (2 for 6) bagged two wickets that changed the course of the contest. Hemalatha held her nerve, bowled the 18th and 20th over of the clash, and Tamil Nadu clinched victory from the jaws of defeat. Apart from Hemalatha, Ramyashri (2 for 7) too shone with the ball.
For the losing side, Sneh Rana played her part, scoring 25 off 52 balls which contained one boundary.
This was the second win in the competition for Tamil Nadu eves. They had defeated Tripura by 31 runs on Saturday. Batting first, Tamil Nadu had scored 120 for 7. In reply, they went on to restrict their opposition to 89 for 8.
Brief scores: Tamil Nadu 68 in 20 overs (Niranjana 17, Diksha 2-4, Sunita 2-18, Sneh 2-10, Neelam 2-15) bt Punjab 65-9 in 20 overs (Sneh Rana 25; Ramyashri 2-7, Hemalatha 2-6)