Southern Super Stars cruised to their second consecutive win of the Legends League Cricket 2026 season, beating Royal Riders Punjab by a comfortable 40 runs at Haldwani. Consequently, Puneet Mehra earned Player of the Match for a sensational 63 off 35 balls that powered the SSS innings.
Batting first, Southern Super Stars posted 179/7 in 20 overs, built around a massive 107-run third-wicket partnership between Dilshan Munaweera (53 off 37) and Puneet Mehra (63 off 35). Meanwhile, Anureet Singh was the pick of the RRP bowlers with 2/33 in 4 overs, while Chaturanga de Silva kept things tidy with 1/19 in 3 overs.
In reply, Mohammad Shahzad (44 off 42) anchored the early chase, but Punit Bisht behind the stumps was outstanding with three stumpings. A late collapse saw RRP lose four wickets for just 2 runs in the death overs as Diwesh Pathania (3/20) ripped through the lower order. Royal Riders Punjab finished at 139/8, falling 40 runs short.
Match Details
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Match | Royal Riders Punjab vs Southern Super Stars, 7th Match, Legends League Cricket 2026 |
| Venue | Indira Gandhi International Cricket Stadium, Haldwani |
| Result | Southern Super Stars won by 40 runs |
| Southern Super Stars | 179/7 (20 overs) |
| Royal Riders Punjab | 139/8 (20 overs) |
| Player of the Match | Puneet Mehra (63 off 35, 8×4, 2×6) |
| Toss | Southern Super Stars batted first |
First Innings Highlights
Here are the Key Highlights of 1st Innings:
Double Blow Leaves SSS at 32/2
Hamilton Masakadza and Punit Bisht opened for Southern Super Stars, adding 32 runs in 28 balls for the first wicket. Masakadza looked positive with 19 off 16 balls (2 fours, 1 six) before Chaturanga de Silva bowled him at 32/1 in the 5th over. Just three balls later, Angelo Perera struck as well, bowling Punit Bisht for 13 off 13 (2 fours) at 32/2. Two wickets at the same score within the space of three deliveries put early pressure on SSS. However, that pressure was about to be completely absorbed by the next two batters at the crease.
Munaweera and Mehra’s 107-Run Masterclass
What followed was the biggest partnership of the LLC 2026 season so far. Dilshan Munaweera and Puneet Mehra put together a stunning 107 runs in just 64 balls for the third wicket, taking the score from 32/2 to 139/3. Munaweera was the more classical of the two, stroking 53 off 37 balls with eight fours and a six at a strike rate of 143.24. He was eventually caught by Rishi Dhawan off Anureet Singh at 139/3 in the 16th over. Meanwhile, Mehra was devastating. His 63 off 35 balls featured eight fours and two sixes at a strike rate of 180.00. Together, the pair scored freely against an attack that had no answers during this phase.
Late Wickets Don’t Slow the Scoring
After the partnership was broken, SSS lost a cluster of quick wickets. Waqarullah Ishaq fell for 7 off 3 (1 six), trapped LBW by Thisara Perera at 154/4 in the 17th over. Subsequently, Puneet Mehra was caught and bowled by Anureet Singh for 63 at 162/5, and Abhishek Raut contributed 8 off 7 before Rishi Dhawan bowled him at 171/6 in the 20th over. Ravi Jangid added a quickfire 8 off 3 (2 fours) before being run out on the final ball. Despite losing five wickets in the last 5 overs, SSS still scored 40 runs during that phase, finishing on a highly competitive 179/7. For RRP, Anureet Singh (2/33) was the most effective bowler, while Farman Ahmed conceded 33 runs in 3 overs without taking a wicket.
| Category | Player | Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Best Batsman | Puneet Mehra | 63 runs (35 balls, 8×4, 2×6) |
| Best Bowler | Chaturanga de Silva | 3-0-19-1 |
Second Innings Highlights
Here are the Key Highlights of 2nd Innings:
Shahzad Anchors the Powerplay
Mohammad Shahzad and Phil Mustard gave Royal Riders Punjab a steady start, putting on 40 runs in 35 balls for the opening wicket. Mustard struck 19 off 15 balls (1 four, 2 sixes) before Punit Bisht stumped him off Ravi Jangid at 40/1 in the 6th over. RRP reached 46 in the powerplay, but the required rate was already climbing with 134 needed off 84 balls. Danushka Gunathilaka came in next and added 28 runs in 23 balls with Shahzad. However, Bisht pulled off another stumping, this time off Abhishek Sakuja, to remove Gunathilaka for 7 off 8 (1 six) at 68/2 in the 10th over.
Punit Bisht’s Three Stumpings Derail the Chase
Punit Bisht completed a remarkable hat-trick of stumpings when he stumped captain Asghar Afghan off Ravi Jangid for 4 off 7 balls at 74/3 in the 12th over. Three different batters, three different bowlers, all stumped by the same keeper. That’s the kind of performance that rarely shows up on the scorecard but wins matches. Shortly after, Asif Mansoori had Shahzad caught by Puneet Mehra for 44 off 42 balls (4 fours, 2 sixes) at 81/4 in the 13th over. With the top four back in the dugout, RRP still needed 99 runs off 47 balls.
Perera-Dhawan Stand Offers Hope Before Death-Over Collapse
Thisara Perera and Rishi Dhawan then launched a spirited counter-attack, putting together 48 runs in 34 balls for the fifth wicket. Perera hit 28 off 23 (3 fours, 1 six) while Dhawan contributed 17 off 14 (1 four, 1 six). Nevertheless, Kamran Khan bowled Perera at 129/5 in the 18th over, and from that point the innings fell apart completely. Diwesh Pathania took three wickets in the space of five balls: he bowled Dhawan at 129/6 on the first ball of the 19th over, then had Angelo Perera LBW at 131/7, and clean-bowled Samiullah Shinwari for a duck at 131/8 on the very next delivery. Four wickets fell for just 2 runs between overs 17.6 and 18.5. RRP limped to 139/8 as Southern Super Stars completed a dominant 40-run victory.
| Category | Player | Performance |
|---|---|---|
| Best Batsman | Mohammad Shahzad | 44 runs (42 balls, 4×4, 2×6) |
| Best Bowler | Diwesh Pathania | 4-0-20-3 |
