Kanpur, September 4, 2023: In yet another thrilling contest, the Lucknow Falcons defeated the Kashi Rudras in the second UPT20 match of the day at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur, winning by 5 wickets with four balls remaining. Hardeep Singh and Kritagya Singh assisted the Lucknow Falcons in crossing the finish line in the final over of the game as they chased a low total of 122 in a low-scoring thriller. The game’s top performers were the bowlers, Kartikeya Jaiswal of Lucknow (3/12) and Atal Bihari Rai of Kashi (3/22).
A scorching spell from Yash Dayal cost the Kashi Rudras Priyanshu Pandey (14) and Shivam Bansal in the first three overs of their innings, leaving them at 36/2 at the end of their powerplay. Prince Yadav (22) and captain Karan Sharma (31) worked together to calm the ship as they put on a 51-run stand in 37 balls. However, the bond was broken when Kartikeya Jaiswal entered the attack; the pacer struck out Prince Yadav and Karan Sharma in his first over.
Soon after, Jaiswal also eliminated Parv Singh (1), while Vipraj Nigam sent back Ankur Malik (0). As the Kashi Rudras struggled to 76/6 in 12 overs, they were in trouble. Before Vikrant Chaudhary bowled both batters in the 16th over, Bobby Yadav (10) and Abhishek Singh (23) put up 30 runs, providing some cause for optimism. With the wickets of M. Shareem and Atal Bihari Rai, Nadeem’s left-arm spinner disposed of the Kashi Rudras’ tail and ensured that they were bowled out for a pitiful 122/10 in 18.4 overs.
Atal Bihari Rai of Kashi quickly stopped the Lucknow Falcons’ run chase. In the course of two overs, Rai quickly eliminated the top order, removing Harsh Tyagi (10), Priyam Garg (0), and Aanjaneya Suryavanshi (10) in quick succession. At 22/3, at the conclusion of the powerplay, Lucknow was expertly positioned. Shaurya Singh and Aaradhya Yadav (both 29) added 50 runs in 42 balls, stabilizing the innings.
Shaurya Singh’s 23-run contribution was short-circuited by a peach from Shiva Singh, leaving the Falcons at 71/3 after 12.3 overs. The Lucknow Falcons required 43 runs in 30 balls, which Kritagya Singh and Aaradhya Yadav milked with singles. Aaradhya Singh was run out in the 16th over with the score reading 85-4 due to an unfortunate middle-order blunder. After a few nervous moments, Hardeep Singh joined Kritagya, and the two helped the Lucknow Falcons win by five wickets and cruise home.
Short Scores
Falcons of Lucknow won by five wickets.
Kashi Rudras scored 122/10 in 18.4 overs (Karan Sharma scored 31 runs in 24 balls, Abishek Yadav scored 23 runs in 17 balls, Prince Yadav scored 22 runs in 18 balls, Kartikeya Jaiswal had three wickets in the bin, Yash Dayal had two outs, Nadeem had one, and Vikrant Chaudhary had two).
(Aaradhya Yadav scored 29 runs in 22 balls, Kritagya Singh scored 25 runs in 21 balls, Shaurya Singh scored 23 runs in 22 balls, Hardeep Singh scored 20 runs in 11 balls, Atal Bihari Rai took three wickets, and Shiva Singh took one wicket for Lucknow Falcons to reach 125/5 in 19.2 overs.)
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