Mystics pull off last-ball thriller

Bengaluru: After a sedate start, top-order bat Smaran R made his presence felt in the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 tournament with a 60-ball unbeaten 104, which helped Gulbarga Mystics pull off a last-ball thriller against Mysore Warriors by three wickets. Chasing a stiff 197 target, Smaran fittingly signalled victory with a fine boundary.Asked to bat, Mysuru scored 196/8 on the back of skipper Karun Nair’s half-century (66; 35b; 8x4; 2x6) and a sizzling 13-ball 40 (2x4; 4x6) by J Suchith. Samit Dravid chipped in with a handy 33. For Gulbarga, Monish Reddy (2/25), Prithviraj Shekhawat (2/28) and Yashovardhan Pratap (2/31) delivered with the ball.In reply, Gulbarga lost skipper Devdutt Padikkal (1) and Luvnith Sisodia (4) in the first two overs. Impact Player Aneesh KV (24) and Smaran stabilized the innings, with Aneesh striking three fours off Dhanush Gowda in one over, and Smaran clearing the ropes twice, guiding Gulbarga to 56/2 by the end of the powerplay. The momentum shifted again when Manoj Bhandage struck twice, dismissing Aneesh KV and Yashovardhan Pratap (0) quickly, putting Mysore in control. However, Wahid Faizan Khan provided support to Smaran, starting his innings with a six over square leg and scoring 18 off 11 balls before being foxed by K Gowtham in the 12th over.Meanwhile, Smaran R reached his half-century in just 30 balls, with five fours and three sixes. The highlight was 83-run Smaran’s partnership with Praveen Dubey. Dubey struck two sixes and a four before being dismissed by Vidhyadhar Patil in the 19th over. With the match going down to the wire, Smaran brought up his century in the final over and held his nerve to guide Gulbarga home.BHUVAN STARS FOR BLASTERSBhuvan Raju (59 n.o; 36b; 3x4; 4x6) helped Bengaluru Blasters register a seven-wicket win over Shivamogga Lions in the second match. Asked to bat, Shivamogga put up 163/9 in 20 overs with Hardik Raj’s 69 being the top score. In reply, captain Mayank Agarwal put the chase on track with his 34-ball 42 and Bhuvan ensured Blasters cruised home with 16 balls to spare. Brief scores: Mysuru Warriors: 196/8 in 20 overs (Karun Nair 66, Samit Dravid 33, J Suchith 40; Monish Reddy 2-25, Prithviraj Shekhawat 2-28,Yashovardhan Parantap 2-31) lost to Gulbarga Mystics: 200/3 in 20 overs (Smaran R 104n.o, Praveen Dubey 37, Vidhyadhar Patil 2-42, Manoj Bhandge 2-40). Shivamogga Lions: 163/9 in 20 overs (Bharath Dhuri 29, Hardik Raj 69; Lavish Kaushal 2-34, Shubhang Hegde 2-32) lost to Bengaluru Blasters: 168/3 in 17.2 overs (Mayank Agarwal 42, Bhuvan Raju 59 n.o; Doddamani Anand 2-23).
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