TG20 Season 1: Abhirath, Ganesh fire unbeaten E-Champions to 56-run win over Khammam Aces

Hyderabad, June 29 (IANS) Hyderabad E-Champions produced a dominant all-round display to register a commanding 56-run victory over Anvita Khammam Aces in the Hyderabad Cricket Association’s TG20 in the second match at the G.M.C. Balayogi Stadium in Gachibowli, Hyderabad on Monday.

A blistering half-century from Abhirath Reddy, valuable contributions from district player Ganesh Gadugu as well as Anvith Reddy, and disciplined bowling led by Sriniketh and Ajay Dev Goud helped the E-Champions defend 211 and extend their impressive unbeaten run at the top of the table.

Meanwhile, Abhirath’s impressive 59 off 26 balls puts him on top of the Orange Cap standings with 252 runs to his name. Adding to the team’s impressive run, Ajay Dev also took his place at the top of the Purple Cap standings with 10 wickets to his name.

E-Champions recovered from a watchful start through an explosive opening partnership between Sai Vikas Reddy (22 off 20) and Abhirath. The skipper then took the attack to the bowlers with a flurry of boundaries and sixes, including a 24-run fifth over, as the E-Champions raced to 77/1 at the end of the powerplay before Ved Reddy dismissed him.

Sai Vikas continued to anchor the innings alongside Anvith Reddy (32 off 21) as the E-Champions crossed the 100-run mark in the 11th over. Ved then removed Sai Vikas, while Shanmukha Ashwin’s quickfire cameo of 19 in 13 balls featuring two sixes kept the momentum going before GSK Reddy struck. Anvith and Ganesh Gadugu (44 off 21) followed up with a brisk partnership of 31 runs in 16 balls to take the score to 136/3 after 13 overs.

Ganesh accelerated brilliantly at the death, striking two sixes off Vidyananda Reddy before Anvith’s run-out briefly slowed the innings. Pranav Varma (18 off 13) chipped in with timely boundaries as Hyderabad E-Champions surged past 170 with four overs remaining.

Saaketh Dhatrak picked up two wickets in the penultimate over before Sahendra Mallu claimed two more in the final over, including Ganesh and Ajay Dev (6 off 2). Despite the late collapse, E-Champions finished with a formidable 211/9.

With a tough target to chase down, Aces endured a shaky start to the chase, losing GSK Reddy (7 off 5) in the second over despite a brisk beginning from Wafi Kachchhi (21 off 15) and Himateja Kodimela. Wafi looked dangerous with a couple of boundaries but was dismissed by Sriniketh in the fifth over, while Mayank Gupta (5 off 8) struggled to accelerate as the Aces reached 50/2 at the end of the powerplay.

The innings lost further momentum through the middle overs as Ashwin and Anvith kept the scoring in check. Ashwin accounted for Mayank, while Anvith removed Mickil Jaiswal (3 off 8) to leave the Aces at 68/4 after 10 overs. Himateja, however, kept the chase alive with an aggressive counterattack, smashing two sixes and a four off Akhil Rathod before finding support from Prateek Reddy (11 off 12).

The pair stitched together a useful stand, with Himateja continuing to find the boundary and Prateek chipping in with a crucial six to take the Aces past the 100-run mark. However, Sriniketh broke the partnership by dismissing Prateek, before Ajay Dev struck in the following over to remove the well-set Himateja after his fighting knock of 64 runs in 44 balls.

Aces’ hopes of a late comeback faded in the death overs despite a few blows from Sahendra Mallu (16 off 9). Ajay Dev struck a crucial blow by dismissing Sahendra in the 18th over before Ganesh Gadugu wrapped up the innings with two wickets in the final over, restricting the Aces to 155/9 in 20 overs.

Brief Scores:

Hyderabad E-Champions 211/9 in 20 overs (Abhirath Reddy 59, Ganesh Gadugu 44, Ved Reddy 2/24, Sahendra Mallu 2/35) beat Anvita Khammam Aces 155/9 in 20 overs (Himateja Kodimela 65, Wafi Kachchhi 21, K. Sriniketh 3/28, Ajay Dev Goud 2/36, Ganesh Gadugu 2/2) by 56 runs

–IANS

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