2018 Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy Karnataka vs Hyderabad: The boundary that did not happen
The Syed Ali Mushtaq Ali Trophy encounter between Hyderabad and Karnataka at Vishakhapatnam so far looks to be an exciting and high-scoring one. Karnataka were put into bat by Hyderabad skipper Ambati Rayudu. Mayank Agarwal began well with two boundaries in the first over. However, he was dismissed in the first ball of the second over.
The fourth ball of the second over saw a bit of controversy, however. Mohammad Siraj bowled a length delivery to Karun Nair, who then flicked it towards mid-wicket boundary. Mehdi Hassan came running to pick the ball. Hassan did pick the ball before it reached the boundary but his left leg was clearly touching the boundary.
The umpire Ulhas Gandhe did not check it, and ruled the outcome of the ball as two runs. As is visible in the footage, Hassan’s left foot is touching the boundary ropes when he picks up the ball. Commentator Amol Muzumdar was convinced that it was a boundary, stating, “Definitely! Definitely a boundary; the player (Hassan) knows that.
Luckily for Bangalore, the two runs were added later on and their score became 205. Rayudu had an argument with the umpire but it was clearly the right decision. Hyderabad were off to an explosive start thanks to openers Tanmay Agarwal and Akshath Reddy. The duo added 70 runs for the first wicket before Agarwal was dismissed for 38.
Reddy, however, was giving the Bangalore bowlers a hard time by smashing them all around the ground. Hyderabad were cruising in the first ten overs and it seemed like Bangalore would lose. The 11th over changed the landscape of the match. Stuart Binny dismissed Ravi Teja before getting the big wicket of Akshath Reddy.
Hyderabad then went on losing wickets in quick succession. However, the match saw another twist as Bavanaka Sandeep began to smash boundaries to keep Hyderabad in the game. Sandeep was run out during the final over by K Gowtham and Hyderabad eventually fell two runs short.
The conversion of those two runs into a boundary was the decisive factor. Nevertheless, it was an exciting match and a well-deserved win for Bangalore.