This game was a match between the number 2 and 3 team in the league chart. Falcons by defeating Chiba sharks entered the semi-finals by kicking MIB out. And so far, Rangers dominated every league game in all departments. So, before the start of the game, the Rangers were clear favorites. And when they restricted Falcons to 119 runs in 30 overs match it looked they might not be chasing more than 160-170. But in the last 10 overs, Falcons batting unit surprised Rangers with blistering 83 runs in last 7 overs. Before Rangers could realise, Falcons had put on a competitive total of 210/7 in 40 overs onboard.
From Rangers, Habib and Dinesh Sandaruwan bowled consistently well throughout their spell. But it was Falcons opener Anil Chavan (43 ) whose patience paid the dividend later part of the inning for his team. In the middle order Dilip (22) carried the role of anchor. It allowed Jagdish Rana (16) & impressive cameo by Sheesh Ram (46) in 35 balls.
In the end, Falcons set 211 run target for Rangers. The Rangers contributed 43 extras in this total.
Falcons needed to display intensity right from the beginning. The new ball opening pair of Jagdish and Shubham exactly did that. From Rangers, the Opening pair of Butto Umair and Devinda had no opportunity to free their arms. But Umair (16) inning was looking promising until he was judged LBW. Nalin Priyadarshana, the only other batsman who showed willingness to stay at the wicket. Finally Rangers inning folded n 26.5 over for 126 runs.
