SPL 2019, Match 1, Halar Heroes vs Kutch Warriors Review - Vasavada's all-round effort takes Heroes over the line

A comprehensive all-round effort from captain Aarpit Vasavada saw Halar Heroes register a 24-run win in the inaugural encounter of the Saurashtra Premier League (SPL). The low-scoring affair in Rajkot turned out to be pretty entertaining and also brought into the limelight some youngsters like Parth Bhut, who starred with his left-arm spin for the losing side Kutch Warriors.

After winning the toss and choosing to bat first, the Halar Heroes didn’t get off the best of starts. Harvik Desai and Aezaz Kothariya struggled to see off the swinging new ball and eventually, Desai fell early in the fourth over. Skipper Vasavada came in and consolidated the innings in company of Kothariya, who also found some rhythm after spending time in the middle.

The duo showed good temperament despite not scoring at a significant rate. They added 59 runs for the second wicket before Kothariya was dismissed for a 29-ball 31. Their innings picked up great momentum after this wicket as Vishvaraj Jadeja came and hammered some mighty blows.

Jadeja’s 22-ball 35 saw a drastic shift in momentum with runs coming thick and fast. Vasavada too got some boundaries going and things looked pretty good for them at this point. Yet, the Kutch bowlers picked up some crucial wickets and stemmed the run flow big time to deny the batting side a good finish.

They scored just 35 runs in the last 28 balls and managed 147 runs on the board losing 7 wickets. Parth Bhut was the star of the show, who displayed some great skill with his spin and returned with figures of 3/24.

Warriors bottle a sensational start

The Kutch Warriors got a brilliant start with former U19 star Snell Patel and Avi Barot scoring runs at a good pace in the powerplay. They looked in brilliant touch and seemed to run away with the game. Things began to slow up after the power play was done and after adding 68 runs for the opening wicket, both openers fell in consecutive deliveries to skipper Vasavada.

The Warriors gathered very little momentum after that. Krunal Karamchandani and Vasavada’s spell in these middle overs completely stemmed the flow of runs and the required rate crept up. The likes of Rajdeep Darbar and Kuldeep Raval in the middle tried to show some intent but were blown away by a bowling masterclass.

There was no life in their middle order and will give skipper Jaydev Unadkat many things to worry about. Apart from Hitendra Jadeja, who struck a couple of boundaries after the required rate went out of control, there seemed no palpable strength in their middle order.

Eventually, Vasavada’s 3/15 in 4 overs helped the Heroes confiscate the Warriors to 123 runs in their 20 overs for the loss of seven wickets. It was a comprehensive start for the side from Halar, who will be in action again on Thursday.

Brief Scores

Halar Heroes: 147/7 in 20 overs (Aarpit Vasavada 44, Vishwaraj Jadeja 35; Parth Bhut 3/24)

Kutch Warriors: 123/7 in 20 overs (Avi Barot 35; Aript Vasavada 3/15)

Result: Halar Heroes won by 24 runs

Man of the match: Aarpit Vasavada

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