Maharaja Trophy KSCA 2023: Bengaluru Blasters bring up first victory of the tournament

Day 13, Match 1

Bengaluru, 25^th August, 2023: The Bengaluru Blasters found their elusive first victory as they beat the Mysuru Warriors by 11 runs in the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20. A century from Mayank Agarwal (105 off 57 balls) and a four-wicket haul by debutant off spinner Mohsin Khan (4/35) helped Bengaluru overpower a blitzkrieg in the second innings from Mysuru Warriors impact Player SU Karthik (70 off 30 balls), in a match that saw over 400 runs.

After opting to bat first, Mayank Agarwal’s Bengaluru Blasters were off to a quiet start scoring 16 runs of the first four overs and losing the wicket of EJ Jasper to J Suchith. Two consecutive sixes from the bat of Agarwal (105 off 57 balls) off the final two deliveries of the fifth over indicated a change in intent as they reached a total of 43-1 by the end of the powerplay.

D Nischal (29) supported his skipper in a 97-run partnership from just 55 balls for the second wicket before he was caught out in the deep in the 12^th over bringing Shubhang Hegde (24) to the crease. Hegde and Agarwal rotated strike well to set an ideal launchpad, having reached 142-2 in 15 overs.

Shubhang Hegde was dismissed by Monish Reddy in the 17^th over with Mayank still going strong on 96* which included nine fours and five sixes. Agarwal went on to bring up his century in 55 balls with a six before he was dismissed by Gautam Mishra the following over. Suraj Ahuja provided the big finish that Bengaluru was looking for, striking 35* runs off 10 balls, including four sixes and a four to take the team to 212-4 after 20 overs.

It was raining boundaries when the Mysuru Warriors came out to bat in the second innings as openers SU Karthik (70 off 30 balls) and Ravikumar Samarth (35 off 16 balls) stitched together a partnership of 60 runs from 29 balls before Samarth was dismissed. The onslaught continued as Karthik brought up the fastest half century of the tournament in 22 balls to take the team to 88-1 after six overs, which was the highest score at the end of a powerplay in this edition.

Debutant off spinner Mohsin Khan and chinaman Sarfaraz Ashraf turned the game in Bengaluru’s favour as their combined spell of five overs gave away just 27 runs and accounted for the wickets of SU Karthik, KS Lankesh (1), Shivkumar Rakshith (6) and Karun Nair (32), leaving Mysuru with 57 runs required of the final four overs.

The 18^th over from Mohsin Khan saw two sixes along with the wickets of Manoj Bhandage (6) and Jagadeesha Suchith (19), bringing the equation down to 26 runs required of two overs with three wickets in hand. Following Shoaib Manager’s run out, the Bengaluru Blasters went on to win the match by 11 runs, bringing up their first win of the tournament.

Brief Scores

Kalyani Bengaluru Blasters won by 11 runs

Bengaluru Blasters - 212-4 in 20 overs: (Mayank Agarwal 105 off 57 balls, Suraj Ahuja 35* off 10 balls, D Nischal 29 off 25 balls, Jagadeesha Suchith 2-34, Monish Reddy 1-32, Gautam Mishra 1-32)

Mysuru Warriors - 202-8 in 20 overs: (SU Karthik 70 off 30 balls, Ravikumar Samarth 35 off 16 balls, Karun Nair 32 off 34 balls, Mohsin Khan 4-35, Sarfaraz Ashraf 2-23, LR Kumar 1-46)

Day 13, Match 2

Bengaluru, 25^th August, 2023: The Hubli Tigers continued their dominant run as they brought up their seventh win of the tournament and continued to stay at the top of the table in the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20. KL Shrijith’s half century (50 off 41 balls) and Manvanth Kumar’s all round show (2/20 and 27 off 21 balls) overshadowed Shreyas Gopal’s brilliance (31 off 31 balls and 4/30) as Hubli went on to beat the Shivamogga Lions by three wickets with eight balls to spare.

Put in to bat by Hubli Tigers, the Shivamogga Lions got off to a modest start scoring 44 runs for the loss of three wickets in the powerplay. Santokh Singh got rid of Nihal Ullal (9) and Vinay Sagar (0) off consecutive balls in the third over while Rohan Kadam (17), who was looking in good nick, having struck a six and four, was run out following a terrible mix-up with Rohit Kumar (18) in the fourth over.

While Rohit Kumar perished to Praveen Dubey in the tenth over, Abhinav Manohar (1) and Pranav Bhatia (0) were KC Cariappa’s victims the following over, at the end of which the score read 59-6. Kranthi Kumar (34) then accompanied skipper Shreyas Gopal (31) at the crease, putting together a partnership of 44 runs from 38 balls to bring some semblance to the Shivamogga innings before Gopal was dismissed in the beginning of the 18^th over.

Manvanth Kumar picked up the wickets of Kranthi Kumar and Aditya Somanna (0) off successive balls in the final over and Adhoksh Hegde was run out on the final ball as the Hubli Tigers bowled Shivamogga out for 130 in 20 overs. For Hubli, KC Cariappa (2/17), Manvanth Kumar (2/20) and Santokh Singh (2/26) picked two wickets apiece.

Shivamogga skipper Shreyas Gopal was all over the Hubli Tigers in the second innings, picking up the wickets of MB Shivam (0), Md. Taha (12), Naga Bharath (0) and counterpart Manish Pandey (3) within the powerplay. KL Shrijith (50) stood tall from the other end, scoring 23 runs to take the score to 41-4 by the end of the sixth over.

Praveen Dubey (18) was bowled by Pranav Bhatia in the tenth over to leave Hubli tottering on 71-5 at the halfway mark when Manvanth Kumar (27) walked out to bat. Kumar took on Shreyas Gopal as he struck three sixes in the 14^th over to ease the pressure on the chase. KL Shrijith went on to bring up his half century in 38 balls before he was dismissed by V Koushik. Kranthi Kumar then accounted for the wicket of Manvanth Kumar in the 17^th over.

Needing just 17 runs from the last three overs, two sixes from pacer Lavish Kaushal (14*) ensured that the Hubli Tigers went on to win by three wickets with eight balls to spare.

Hubli Tigers won by 3 wickets with 8 balls to spare

Brief Scores

Shivamogga Lions - 130 all out in 20 overs: (Kranthi Kumar 34 off 25 balls, Shreyas Gopal 31 off 31 balls, Rohit Kumar 18 off 25 balls, KC Cariappa 2-17, Manvanth Kumar 2/20, Santokh Singh 2-26)

Hubli Tigers - 131-7 in18.4 overs: (KL Shrijith 50 off 41 balls, Manvanth Kumar 27 off 21 balls, Praveen Dubey 18 off 17 balls, Shreyas Gopal 4-30, V Koushik 1-15, Kranthi Kumar 1-23)