Maharaja Trophy KSCA 2023: Gulbarga register clinical win over Mangaluru to semis berth

A 114-run opening partnership between KV Aneesh (72*) and Chethan LR (58) secures comfortable win.

By Press Release

Updated - 27 Aug 2023, 23:03 IST

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Day 15, Match 1
Bengaluru, 27th August, 2023: Defending Champions Gulbarga Mystics made light work of their 145-run chase as they beat the Mangaluru Dragons by eight wickets with 4.3 overs to spare in the Maharaj Trophy KSCA T20.
A magnificent 114 run opening stand between Gulbarga’s KV Aneesh (72* off 42 balls) and LR Chethan (58 off 37 balls) after a clinical bowling performance in the first innings from their bowlers led by Abhilash Shetty (3/33) made them the third team to find a place in the semi-finals.
After the Mangaluru Dragons were put in to bat by the Gulbarga Mystics, BR Sharath (38) and Thippa Reddy (27) got them off to a great start scoring 51 runs off the first five overs despite a first ball duck for Rohan Patil who was caught behind off Gulbarga skipper Vyshak Vijaykumar’s bowling in the second over.
What followed was an entirely different story as the fall of BR Sharath in the sixth over led to a middle order collapse with the Gulbarga Mystics bowlers continuously chipping away wickets. From a position of dominance at 56-1 in 5.3 overs, the Mangaluru Dragons slipped to 87-7 by the end of the 12th over. Aniruddha Joshi (46) resurrected the innings, putting together a much-needed partnership of 52 runs from 38 balls with Impact Player Akshan Rao (12) before the former was dismissed by Abhilash Shetty in the 19th over.
Sankalp Shettennavar (3) and Akshan Rao were soon removed as the Mangaluru Dragons were bundled out for 144 in 19.1 overs with Abhilash Shetty (3/33) finishing as their best bowler.
The Gulbarga Mystics started their chase in grand fashion, scoring 59 runs in the powerplay without any casualties. Both KV Aneesh and LR Chethan scored runs at a brisk pace as they struck six fours and two sixes between them in the first six overs.
LR Chethan (58 off 37 balls) went on to bring up his half century in 33 balls while KV Aneesh (72* off 42 balls) reached the same landmark in 30 balls as the team breached the 100-run mark in exactly ten overs. Mangaluru skipper Krishnappa Gowtham picked up the wickets of LR Chethan and Macneil Noronha (0) in the 12th over to give his team a glimmer of hope but Aneesh and R Smaran (8*) ensured that there were no more setbacks in the chase as they went on to achieve the target in 15.3 overs with 8 wickets in hand.
Brief Scores:
Gulbarga Mystics won by 8 wickets with 27 balls to spare
Mangaluru Dragons - 144 all out in 19.1 overs: (Aniruddha Joshi 46 off 32 balls, BR Sharath 38 off 21 balls, Thippa Reddy 27 off 18 balls, Abhilash Shetty 3-33, Vyshak Vijaykumar 2-20, Hardik Raj 2-24)

Gulbarga Mystics - 145-2 in 15.3 overs: (KV Aneesh 72* off 42 balls, LR Chethan 58 off 37 balls, R Smaran 8* off 11 balls, Krishnappa Gowtham 2-21)


Day 15, Match 2

Bengaluru, 27th August, 2023: Shivamogga Lions beat Kalyani Bengaluru Blasters by 11 runs in the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 to finish fourth on the points table and qualify for the semi-finals. A big-hitting masterclass from Abhinav Manohar (58* off 25 balls) and Shreyas Gopal (43 off 23 balls) in their 102-run partnership proved to be too much for Bengaluru as D Nischal’s 68 from 40 balls went in vain with Bengaluru ending their innings on 181-8.

The Shivamogga Lions had a modest powerplay, scoring 37 runs for the loss of one wicket in the form of Nihal Ullal (10), who fell to Shubhang Hegde in the fourth over, after being asked to bat first by Kalyani Bengaluru Blasters.

Opener Rohan Kadam (35) added 42 runs for the second wicket with Vinay Sagar (32) before perishing to Sarfaraz Ashraf in the ninth over at the end of which the score read 64-2. Bengaluru pacer Tanish Mahesh got rid of Rohit Kumar (8) and the well-set Vinay Sagar in the 12th over bringing Abhinav Manohar and Shreyas Gopal to the crease at 86-4. The duo got going immediately taking the score to 116-4 by the end of the 15th over.

Both skipper Shreyas Gopal (43 off 23 balls) and Abhinav Manohar (58* off 25 balls) went on an absolute rampage, destroying the Bengaluru bowlers in the death and making the fielding side pay for the multiple catches that were dropped. Manohar went on to bring up his half century in 21 balls. Gopal was bowled by Tanish Mahesh on the penultimate ball of the innings after a mammoth 102-run partnership from just 47 balls as the team finished on 192-5 from their 20 overs, which included 98 runs in the final seven overs.

In the second innings, Bengaluru skipper Mayank Agarwal (14) was dismissed by counterpart Shreyas Gopal at the end of the third over but opener EJ Jasper (22) and D Nischal (68) found the boundary on a few occasions to take the score to 48-1 by the end of the powerplay. 

EJ Jasper was dismissed by Pranav Bhatia in the seventh over bringing southpaw Pavan Deshpande (8) to the crease, who was run out in the tenth over at the end of which the score was 76-3. D Nischal brought up his half century in 30 balls during his 60-run partnership with Shubhang Hegde (15) which came off 30 balls. Hegde was dismissed by HS Sharath in the 15th leaving Bengaluru with 60 runs to get in the final five overs.

D Nischal was run out in the 17th over after a well-made 68 from 40 balls. A late onslaught from Suraj Ahuja (27) was negated as he was sent back to the pavilion by Kranthi Kumar while Aditya Somanna picked the wickets of Aman Khan (10) and LR Kumar (6) in the final over to help Shivamogga Lions win by 11 runs and secure a spot in the semi-finals, where they will take on the Hubli Tigers while the Mysuru Warriors will play the Gulbarga Mystics.

Brief Scores: 

Shivamogga Lions won by 11 runs

Shivamogga Lions - 192-5 in 20 overs: (Abhinav Manohar 58* off 25 balls, Shreyas Gopal 43 off 23 balls, Rohan Kadam 35 off 26 balls, Tanish Mahesh 3-50, Sarfaraz Ashraf 1-25, Shubhang Hegde 1-28)

Kalyani Bengaluru Blasters - 181-8 in 20 overs: (D Nischal 68 off 40 balls, Suraj Ahuja 29 off 18 balls, EJ Jasper 22 off 21 balls, Aditya Somanna 2-24, Pranav Bhatia 1-15, Shreyas Gopal 1-25)

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