Ferguson Guides Australia to Victory in High-Scoring Clash

LEEDS: In a thrilling encounter at Headingley on Saturday, Callum Ferguson’s explosive 70 off 38 balls overshadowed Shikhar Dhawan’s impressive unbeaten 91, as Australia Champions secured a four-wicket victory against India Champions in the tenth match of the World Championship of Legends (WCL) 2025.

India Champions, after being put in to bat, amassed a substantial score of 203/4 in their 20 overs, propelled by half-centuries from Dhawan and Yusuf Pathan.

India’s Innings

Dhawan and Robin Uthappa provided a solid foundation for India, forging a 57-run partnership in the initial five overs. However, their momentum was disrupted when Dan Christian dismissed Uthappa (37 off 21) on the first ball of the sixth over.

Christian continued his assault by removing Ambati Rayadu for a duck in the same over, leaving India Champions at 57/2. Dhawan then constructed a 34-run stand with Suresh Raina, who contributed 11 off 11 before falling to Brett Lee in the 11th over.

Darcy Short further dented India’s progress by dismissing Yuvraj Singh (3) in the 13th over, reducing the score to 103/4. Dhawan then found valuable support from Pathan, and the duo combined to add an unbroken 100-run partnership, propelling India past the 200-run mark.

Dhawan remained the top scorer for India, scoring 91 off 60 balls, including 12 fours and a six, while Pathan contributed a quickfire 52 off 23 balls, studded with three fours and four sixes.

Christian was the most successful bowler for Australia Champions, claiming two wickets for 34 runs in his four overs, while Lee and Short took one wicket each.

Australia’s Chase

In pursuit of a challenging 204-run target, Australia Champions successfully chased down the score on the second-to-last ball, with four wickets remaining.

Callum Ferguson spearheaded the chase, scoring an unbeaten 70 off 38 balls, comprising five fours and four sixes. Contributions from Christian (39), Chris Lynn (25), and Short (20) were also crucial in the chase.

Piyush Chawla was the leading wicket-taker for India Champions, taking three wickets for 36 runs in his four overs, followed by Harbhajan Singh with two, and Vinay Kumar with one.

With this four-wicket win, Australia Champions moved to second place in the WCL 2025 standings with five points from three matches, while India Champions are at the bottom with one point after the same number of games.