Dev Lakra's power-packed knock clinches Raghubir title for Bal Bhavan

For quite some time now, Dev Lakra has been counted among the most promising batting talents in Delhi. Standing at well above six feet, the right-handed batsman possesses massive reach and whip of the wrists that can help disdainfully despatch the ball into corners of the ground.

But injury halted his march. What began as a great start in the 2021-22 season suddenly came to a halt when he suffered a knee injury and had to sit out of the 2022-23 season. He came up with some good performances on return and was also picked for the inaugural Delhi Premier League (DPL) last year. But there was something missing in him, those big scores in big matches.

On Saturday, he showcased his skills on the big stage, the final of the Lala Raghubir Singh Memorial Cricket Tournament at the Modern School Ground, Barakhamba Road. While left-handed opener Arpit Rana (152 off 93 balls, 24x4s, 4x6s) was steady, milking runs in the conventional way and adding 192 for the second wicket with Bal Bhavan Cricket Academy skipper Yash Dhull (89 off 56 balls; 13x4s, 3x6s), Lakra walloped Sporting Cricket Club bowlers, mixing T20-esque shots with the conventional hits. Impressive was his bat speed on the shots, even the one on which he was caught out had an extra whip.

There was a switch-hit, a scoop among others as the right-handed batsman raced to 137 off 52 balls (10x4s, 13x6s) and took Bal Bhavan Cricket Academy to 432/9 in 40 overs.

Sporting fielders were also to blame. They dropped all the top-scorers -- Rana, Dhull and Lakra -- early in their innings and were punished severely.

"Our plan was to put as big a total as we could since this is a very high-scoring venue. We though we will make it a bit easy for bowlers. The plan worked out," said Lakra after the final.

Dev Lakra made 137 off just 52 balls

"It is tough after recovering from injury. It takes time to return to form and it becomes tough even in the case of skillset. I played some good shots that I had practiced and I executed them well," said Lakra who also bowled medium-pace and got a wicket.

"I am glad that my all-round performance helped the team win. I am back to 100 per cent fitness."

"Although all my shots were good, the one I hit against the pacers were great," said the 21-year-old, who began playing cricket at home with the tennis ball and then when his interest increased, joined Bal Bhavan Cricket Academy.

"I was always interested in cricket since childhood."

Lakra, however, had the luxury of a strong platform.

"My plan was clear, had to convert loose balls into boundaries, play according to situation. We never thought of making 400 or 300, I just wanted to play for as long as possible. Mayank Rawat was also not in our team, he is our main player. He won the semifinal for us."

Due to the absence of Rawat, busy with Dehradun Gold Cup, the onus was on others and they put their hand up.

But despite their efforts, the target of 433 was attainable considering that Bal Bhavan Cricket Academy's bowling was their weak link especially due to the absence of their semi-final hero Shahbaz Nadeem. The left-arm spinner had taken a break to celebrate Eid with his family in Mewat's Hathin, on the outskirts of Delhi, before flying out to Kolkata for Bengal Premier League.

Sporting were there in the game for most part.

Opener Swastik Chikara, who was part of the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) squad that won the IPL 2025 title but didn't get to play and was always seen hanging around Virat Kohli, was at his best as he carved boundaries with drives, dabs and straight hits.

Sporting skipper Shivam Gupta receives runners-up cheque

The right-handed Chikara, who made a name for himself in the UP T20 League, scored 184 off 100 balls (15x4s, 15x6s) and single-handedly kept his team in the game. He raced to 80 in quick time and it looked like he would take the team close.

But then he ran out of partners. Hardik Sharma (32 off 20) and Vikas Solanki (43 off 29) provided solid company but it was the quick and sudden loss of the big-hitter Lalit Yadav that hurt Sporting the most and forced their backs to the wall.

Lalit Yadav had been in an amazing form in this tournament and was adjudged the Player of the Tournament.

His bread-and-butter sweep shots would have been the deciding factor on this Modern School Ground with shorter side boundaries. But he fell to the sweep itself, and returned unhappy as the umpires had refused to change the ball despite his and Chikara's repeated requests. They felt the ball had gone soft and the seam was coming off.

That wicket pushed them on the backfoot and although there was some resistance from Vision Panchal 'Jonty' (31 off 13 balls, 4x6s) and Chikara, the loss of wickets at regular intervals spelt their doom.

For the record: Lalit Yadav of Sporting Club was adjudged Player of the Tournament; Arpit Rana of Bal Bhavan was the Player of the Match as well as Best Batsman of the Tournament; Arush Melkani of Noida Wonders was adjudged Bowler of the Tournament.

Tags : Swastik Chikara, Dev Lakra, Yash Dhull, Virat Kohli, Royal Challengers Bangalore, Modern School, Arpit Rana