UPT20 2023: Lucknow Falcons thump Kashi Rudras on back of Kartikey Jaiswal’s spin brilliance

Kanpur, 4th September 2023: In yet another riveting encounter, the second match of the day at the ongoing UPT20 saw the Lucknow Falcons clinch victory against the Kashi Rudras, winning by 5 wickets and four balls remaining at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur. A low-scoring thriller unfolded as Hardeep Singh and Kritagya Singh helped the Lucknow Falcons cross the finish line while chasing a low total of 122, in the last over of the match. The match belonged to the bowlers as Lucknow’s Kartikeya Jaiswal (3/12) and Kashi’s Atal Bihari Rai (3/22) were the top performers of the game.

The Kashi Rudras had a shaky start to their innings as they lost Priyanshu Pandey (14) and Shivam Bansal to a fiery spell from Yash Dayal in the first three overs, finishing their powerplay at 36/2. Captain Karan Sharma (31) and Prince Yadav (22) combined to steady the ship as they put on a 51-run stand in 37 balls. However, the alliance was dismantled when Kartikeya Jaiswal was brought into the attack, the pacer picked up Karan Sharma and Prince Yadav in his very first over.

Jaiswal also scalped Parv Singh (1) soon after while Ankur Malik (0) was sent back by Vipraj Nigam. As the Kashi Rudras were in trouble struggling at 76/6 in 12 overs. A glimmer of hope came in the form of Bobby Yadav (10) and Abhishek Singh (23) who put on 30 runs before both batsmen were scalped by Vikrant Chaudhary in the 16th over. The left-arm spin of Nadeem cleaned up the tail with the wickets of M. Shareem and Atal Bihari Rai, ensuring that the Kashi Rudras bundled for a paltry score of 122/10 in 18.4 overs.

 The Lucknow Falcons had their run chase derailed early on by Kashi’s Atal Bihari Rai. Rai ran through the top order in the span of two overs, dismissing Harsh Tyagi (10), and Priyam Garg (0) in consecutive balls followed by the wicket of Aanjaneya Suryavanshi (10) in his next over. At the end of the powerplay, Lucknow was delicately positioned at 22/3. Shaurya Singh and Aaradhya Yadav (29) put on 50 runs in 42 balls to stabilise the innings.

Shaurya Singh’s 23-run contribution came to an end when he was deceived by a peach from Shiva Singh to leave the Falcons at 71/3 in 12.3 overs. As Kritagya Singh joined Aaradhya Yadav and milked singles, the Lucknow Falcons needed 43 runs in 30 balls. An avoidable mix-up in the middle saw Aaradhya Singh find himself run-out with the score reading 85-4 in the 16th over. Despite a few anxious moments, Hardeep Singh joined Kritagya as the duo helped the Lucknow Falcons sail home, defeating the Lucknow Falcons by 5 wickets.

Lucknow Falcons won by 5 wickets

Kashi Rudras – 122/10 in 18.4 overs (Karan Sharma – 31 runs in 24 balls, Abishek Yadav – 23 runs in 17 balls, Prince Yadav – 22 runs in 18 balls, Kartikeya Jaiswal – 3/12, Yash Dayal – 2/18, Nadeem – 2/19, Vikrant Chaudhary – 2/29)

Lucknow Falcons 125/5 in 19.2 overs (Aaradhya Yadav – 29 runs in 22 balls, Kritagya Singh – 25* runs in 21 balls, Shaurya Singh – 23 in 22 balls, Hardeep Singh – 20* runs in 11 balls, Atal Bihari Rai – 3/22, Shiva Singh – 1/10)