Shikhar Dhawan scored an unbeaten 131 and Amit Bhandari bagged five for 36 as Delhi defeated Himachal Pradesh by 107 runs in the Ranji Trophy (North Zone) one day match in Nadaun, Himachal Pradesh on Thursday.

Delhi, who required a big win today after their loss to Punjab in the last match to stay in contention, played with a purpose against their much improved opponents.

Electing to bat, the former champions notched up a score of 266 runs for four wickets in their alloted 50 overs, thanks to a superb century by Dhawan.

The 20-year-old added 176 for second wicket with Rajan Gupta, who scored 76 runs.

For Himachal, Ashok Thakur was the peak of the bowlers claming two for 44 in his 10 overs.

Himachal, who had a cent per cent win record so far in the competition, came under pressure from the beginning and could only manage to score 159 runs in 42.4 overs and also surrendered a bonus point to Delhi.

Manvinder Bisla top scored for the hosts with an unbeaten 35 while Sangram Singh (33) and Ajay Manu (32) tried to put up a fight but could not build on their starts.