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That brings us to the end of this encounter. Till the next time, this is myself (Arya Sekhar Chakraborty) signing off also on behalf of my fellow commentator and good mate Pragadeesh. Cheers!
Shreyas Gopal (Player of the Match) - Looking at the way Jo and Sidd batted anything could've happened. We came back well in the end. Wickets in hand will give 10-15 runs extras and the chances of getting 170 is higher. Even yesterday, it was difficult to bat but still the teams managed to get over 135 by batting deep. I always back my death bowlers and I had the belief that we will win this game but they batted brilliantly.
It turned out to be a nail-biting contest but in the end, it was the Shivamogga Lions who held their nerves and eventually won the encounter by runs. A magnificent innings from Aniruddha Joshi went in vain, as the Lions' bowlers kept it in the right areas and caught exceptionally well in the deep. Eventually, they registered a 9 run victory but not before they were challenged for the majority of the innings.
The openers Sharath BR and Rohan Patil started off in an exquisite fashion, smashing boundaries quite at will in the first 4 overs. They were milking the bowling to all parts of the ground and it was a tough ask for the Shivamogga Lions bowlers. However, the break in play was provided by Nischith N Rao but that was a poor decision from the umpire. Rohan Patil followed suit pretty early as they were suddenly reduced to 40/2. The dangerman Nikin Jose couldn't quite bother the scorer much and was dismissed for just 6.
A couple more fell in quick succession as the Dragons were staring down the barrel. It was the arrival of Aniruddha Joshi which turned things around as he in the company of Krishnamurthy Siddharth shared an impressive stand of 85 runs which brought them back in the game. Joshi struck some powerful blows and went on to score 50 off just 31 deliveries which included 3 fours and 4 sixes.
Siddharth also played a stellar knock bit the departure of Joshi meant that the required climbed at an alarming rate. The dangerous Krishnappa Gowtham couldn't quite make an impact and was dismissed cheaply. Nischith and Pranav Bhatia were the pick of the bowlers for Shivamogga.
20
overs
167/7score
1
1
W
1
4
0
runs
Krishnamurthy Siddharth*
46(35)
Dheeraj Gowda
1(1)
HS Sharath
1/29
19.6 Sharath HS to Krishnamurthy Siddharth, slow bumper, Siddharth tries an uppercut but didn't make any contact. The Lions won by 9 runs
19.5 Sharath HS to Krishnamurthy Siddharth, FOUR! Short and wide, Siddharth cuts it over backward and gets a boundary. A rare bad ball from Sharath but he knows that the match is done and dusted unless he bowls an illegal delivery in the final ball
19.4 Sharath HS to Dheeraj J Gowda, short of a length and it's been pulled down to deep mid-wicket for a single
Dheeraj J Gowda, RHB is the new man in.
19.3 Sharath HS to Krishnappa Gowtham, OUT! Hits the deck hard and it was very quick. Gowtham couldn't get on top of the bounce as he gets a top-edge and the ball travels towards long-on. The fielder dives forward to pouch it safely.
Krishnappa Gowtham c Rohan Kadam b Siddharth HS
19.2 Sharath HS to Krishnamurthy Siddharth, shuffles across to play the scoop but didn't get the length to play the shot. It was a slow delivery into the surface, Siddharth adjusted his shot and the ball pops up and lands safely