New Delhi: Prabhsimran Singh's magnificent maiden IPL hundred was well complemented by Harpreet Brar's four-wicket haul as Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Saturday kept their playoffs hopes alive with a comprehensive 31-run win over Delhi Capitals, who were knocked out of contention in the process.
If Prabhsimran showed tremendous resolve during his 65-ball 103 to single-handedly power PBKS to 167/7, Brar (4/30) and Rahul Chahar (2/16) then spun a web to strangle the DC batters as the home side managed just 135/8, despite a sizzling 27-ball 54 by skipper David Warner.
The win took PBKS to 12 points from as many games, just outside the top four, while it was the end of the road for DC.
Earlier, while none of the other batters could cross the 20-run mark on a sluggish pitch, Prabhsimran's perseverance paid off as he lifted Punjab from 46/3 to a competitive total.
Warner and Phil Salt provided a flying start to the DC chase, but the spin duo of Brar and Chahar triggered a collapse with the hosts inexplicably losing six wickets for just 19 runs to collapse from 69/0 to 88/6 in 10.1 overs.
Brar and Chahar were rewarded for bowling full and straight as wickets tumbled like nine pines at the Arun Jaitley stadium.
If Brar saw the back of Warner, Salt (21), Rilee Rossouw (5) and Manish Pandey (0), Chahar picked up the wickets of Mitchell Marsh (3) and Axar Patel (1).
With 66 needed off 36 balls, Aman Khan (16) and Praveen Dubey (16) tried hard before becoming the victims of Nathan Ellis (2/21) as DC slumped to their eighth loss in 12 games to stay at the bottom with eight points.
Prabhsimran looked well in control as 10 of his hits reached the ropes, while six crossed over it during his 65-ball 103. This was only his second T20 hundred.
The 22-year-old paced his innings well, scoring 27 from his first 30 balls before exploding to amass his next 76 runs off 35 balls.
An aggressive approach on a slow track backfired for PBKS with the team losing three early wickets for 46 in the first six overs after Warner asked them to bat first.
Ishant Sharma was at the forefront as he recovered from a first-ball six to remove Shikhar Dhawan (7) in the next ball with Rossouw taking the catch at deep backward square leg.
Following two nine-run overs, Ishant returned to destroy the stumps of Liam Livingstone (4), who paid the price for dancing down the pitch after being away from strike for sometime with Prabhsimran producing three boundaries.
Prabhsimran looked in good touch as he sent Axar for a six with a reverse hit but two balls later the left-arm spinner cleaned up Jitesh Sharma (5) who looked to play an inside out shot.
Prabhsimran and Sam Curran (20) then steadied the ship with a 72-run partnership off 54 balls.
The momentum shifted drastically after the 11th over when Prabhsimran blasted two successive sixes and then a four off Marsh, milking him for 21 runs.
He completed his fifty off 42 balls in the 13th over before slamming Kuldeep Yadav and Dubey into the stands for two maximums.
Curran tried to join the party but he couldn't clear the ropes as Dubey picked up a wicket.
However, there was no stopping Prabhsimran as he smoked Kuldeep for a six over deep square leg after a four to inch closer to his century.
He achieved the milestone with back-to-back fours off Khaleel Ahmed, reaching the three-digit figure off 61 balls.
Prabhsimran finally was dismissed when he was looking for a scoop shot. He ended up being bowled by Mukesh Kumar.
