Bengaluru: Hubli Tigers and Belagavi Panthers put on a fine show in the inaugural match of this year’s Karbonn Smartphones KPL at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru yesterday taking the sixth edition of the tournament off to a flier. In the end, Hubli took home all the points, thanks to K.V. Siddharth’s brilliant unbeaten 61 of 51 balls.
Hubli opted to bowl, and led by Captain R.Vinay Kumar from the front, made early inroads into the significant Belagavi batting line-up. Vinay, Abhishek Sakuja, the left-arm spinner, and Ritesh Bhatkal all took two wickets apiece as Belagavi were pushed back. However, Sunil Kumar Jain, a muscular left-hand batsman, walked in at No. 6 and smashed an unbeaten 34-ball 39 to help Belagavi post 128.
Chasing the target of 129, Hubli lost Anurag Bajpai and Abhishek Reddy in the first two overs, Stuart Binny and S. Arvind moving the ball cannily to effect both dismissals. It meant the dangerous Mayank Agarwal, usually an irresistible force, was forced to change strategy. He decided to pace the innings along with Siddharth, and the two kept the scoreboard moving. They had added a steady 31 for the third wicket when Belagavi, just refusing to let go, struck again. K. Gowtham showed just why he became one of the most expensive players in the tournament after deceiving Mayank with his off-spin.
Power Star Puneeth Rajkumar (standing fifth from right) who inaugurated the Karbonn Smartphones KPL 2017 at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru yesterday is seen with (from left) Mysuru Warriors Captain Karun Nair, KSCA Assistant Secretary Santhosh Menon, Vice President Mallikarjunaswamy, Treasurer Sreenivas Murthhy, President Sanjay Desai, BCCI Secretary Amitabh Choudhary, KSCA Hon. Secretary Sudhakar Rao, Karbonn Mobiles Chairman Sudhir Hasija and KPL Governing Council Member Vinay Mruthyunjaya.
Unfortunately for Belagavi, they didn’t have much cheer thereafter. Siddharth took charge after Captain Vinay Kumar arrived for company, and after chugging along at a run-a-ball, they applied the squeeze thereafter. Vinay found the fence twice off Shubang Hegde in the 13th over. Then Siddharth, who had displayed plenty of power throughout the evening, stepped forward and clobbered Anand Doddamani over long-on for his second six.
Binny did manage to send back Vinay, with the Hubli captain missing a flick across the line. But at 99 for 4, Hubli knew they needed only to stay calm and close out the victory. And in Siddarth, they had an extremely composed 24-year-old.
Praveen Dubey (19 off 12) played his part as well and the two guided Hubli to their first win of KPL 2017.
Brief Scores
Belagavi Panthers 127 for 8 in 20 overs (Sunil Kumar Jain 39, K.N. Bharath 20; R Vinay Kumar 2/19, Abhishek Sakuja 2/11, Ritesh Bhatkal 2/12) lost to Hubli Tigers 128 for 4 in 17.5 overs (Siddharth 61 not out, R. Vinay Kumar 22; Stuart Binny 2-25).
Today’s Match
Bengaluru Blasters Vs Mysuru Warriors
Venue: M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, 7 pm
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