Mysore Warriors lose to Hubli Tigers

Bengaluru: In the first match of the day, opening batter L.R. Chethan and medium pacer Abhilash Shetty ensured Gulbarga Mystics got off to a winning start in their campaign to defend the title in 2nd edition of Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 Cricket, which began yesterday at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium. They triumphed over last year’s runners-up Bengaluru Blasters with six wickets in hand.

Shetty’s (3/17) hauler and Sharan Goud’s (2/24) proved vital in Gulbarga Mystics’ win with essential contributions from top-order batsman Chethan who scored a quickfire 36 off 24 balls.

Earlier, Gulbarga Mystics put Bengaluru Blasters to bat. The team’s decision worked like magic with Shetty sending D. Nischal (1) and skipper Mayank Agarwal (4) back to the dugout within the third over. At the end of the powerplay, the Blasters were reeling at 43/2 and the Blasters finished with a mildly competitive total of 137/6.

In response, Mystics looked to make a quick meal of their target. Openers Chethan (36) and Adarsh Prajwal (31) displayed their intent from the first over. By the end of the powerplay, Mystics were sitting comfortably at 61/0. A crafty spell from spinner, Shubang Hegde, saw him scalp Chethan, Adarsh and R. Smaran (8). However, contributions from K.V. Aneesh (29*) and Amit Verma (28) ensured Gulbarga Mystics sailed home with six wickets and 15 balls to spare.

Warriors lose to Tigers

In the rain-marred 2nd encounter of the day, Krishnan Srijith (17 off 16 balls) and Mohd. Taha (61 off 30 balls) stitched together an 82-run partnership to register a 9-wicket win for Hubli Tigers.

Put in to bat first, Mysore Warriors struggled to find momentum losing wickets at regular intervals. By the end of the powerplay, the Warriors had lost C. Karthik (0) and Karun Nair (7) while accumulating only 30 runs. Opener, R. Samarth (21) looked to anchor the innings, but failed to convert his start and was eventually dismissed by Mitrakanth Yadav in the tenth over.

Yadav remained the pick of the Tigers’ bowling attacking, as he dismissed Rakshith Shashikumar (2) and Manoj Bhandage (5), while Vidwath Kaverappa and Lavish Kaushal chipped in with two wickets each.

At the halfway mark of the innings, the Warriors were struggling at 46/6. However, J. Suchith (20), Bharath Dhuri (16) and M. Venkatesh (16), all scored runs to help Warriors stumble their way to a meagre total of 111/9.

With rain reducing the target to 80 in 13 overs, the Tigers looked in a comfortable position to chase with 51/1 on board in 4.3 overs when the game resumed. Coming in fresh from the rain-induced break, Krishnan Srijith and Mohd. Taha broke no sweat to stitch an 82-run partnership after Luvnith Sisodia went for a duck for bowler Prasidh Krishna. [Courtesy: CricTracker]