Lucknow, Aug 31 – A complete team performance by Kanpur Superstars earned them a seven-wicket victory over Noida Kings in Season 2 of the Uttar Pradesh (UP) T20 League at the BRSABV Ekana Cricket Stadium here. The bowlers did a good job to restrict Noida to 119 and the batters then overhauled the challenge clinically with 28 balls to spare.
On winning the toss, Noida opted to bat first. The start by the openers was rather watchful as they kept working the strike over and did not hit boundaries. In the early phase, Vineet Panwar was particularly good for Kanpur as he bowled a wicket-maiden – dismissing Aditya Sharma in the fourth over.
Mukesh Kumar was then introduced into the attack; he bowled a very economical spell and took the wickets of Mohammad Amaan and Nitish Rana. When Mukesh dismissed Rana in the ninth over, Noida were 34 for four.
Run-scoring wasn’t an easy task. The first six of the matches came off the bat of Piyush Chawla, who walked in at 50 for five in the 12th over and lofted his second ball down the ground. Up until then, Noida had managed only two boundaries in their innings. It was due to the efforts of Chawla, who scored 19 and Mohammad Sharim that Noida got to 119 in their 20 overs.
Sharim’s knock was critical as he was the most aggressive Noida batter on the day. The 20-ball 35 was worth its weight in gold under the circumstances. During his innings, he smashed one four and four sixes. When he walked out to bat in the 16th over, Noida were 68 for six. Sharim started off as he intended to go – smashing his first ball for six over mid-wicket off Aaqib Khan.
Sharim stayed through to the end and was run out off the last ball of the innings in an attempt to pick a run. Mukesh was Kanpur’s most successful bowler but the others too chipped in with good performances. Ankur Malik bowled two overs and took a wicket, conceding only four runs. Mohsin Khan picked two for 27 and there was a wicket apiece for Panwar and Aaqib.
Kanpur’s run-chase was off to a shaky start when Aashiyan Saifi was dismissed in the second over while trying to clear mid-wicket. Shoaib Siddiqui, the Kanpur wicketkeeper-batter, allayed any nerves his team may have had. With his attacking approach, he ensured the runs came at a quicker pace. He smashed the first two balls of the fourth over for fours to find some momentum.
Kanpur brought up their fifty in the eighth over when Siddique hit two fours off Rana’s off-spin. Adarsh Singh gave Siddiqui good company by holding one end. The first six of Kanpur’s innings came in the 10th over when he hit Naman Tiwari over fine-leg for a six. At the halfway mark, Kanpur had moved to 65. Siddiqui followed that with his first six when he hit Sharim over mid-wicket soon after.
The partnership ended when Adarsh edged one to point off Tiwary. The pair had added 76 in good time and put Kanpur on course. That brought Sameer Rizvi to the crease, who seemed to be in a hurry to finish the game.
He started by smashing two fours of Piyush Chawla. When Tiwari came on to bowl the 14th over, Rizvi started with a four off the second ball. He then pulled the third over the leg-side for a six and followed it up with another maximum over fine-leg.
The Rizvi charge continued as the target approached and the Kanpur captain put on an exhibition for the fans. With four needed to win, he tried to follow up a six with another off Kartik Yadav but was bowled. His innings of 33 came off only 16 balls with three fours and three sixes. Siddiqui finished the match with a four off Prashant Veer over long-on and got to his half-century
Brief scores:
Noida Kings 119/8 in 20 overs (Mohammad Sharim 35; Mukesh Kumar 2-19, Mohsin Khan 2-27) lost to Kanpur Superstars (Shoaib Siddiqui 51 not out, Sameer Rizvi 33; Kartik Yadav 1-15, Ajay Choudhary 1-18, Naman Tiwary 1-31) by seven wickets.