AI Prediction, UPT20 | Relentless Rinku storms Meerut Mavericks into final by taking down Kashi Rudras

Pitch and Weather

The Ekana surface exhibited some zip when the ball was new and shiny but the bounce quickly died down as soon as the Kookaburra lost its sheen. There was plenty of help for the spinners but uniform bounce meant batters could go through with their shots once they settled down into their innings.

Despite forecasts of brief showers, the skies remainend relatively clear during the encounter but there was little escape from the overbearing humidity.

Toss

Kashi Rudras won the toss and chose to bat first under the Lucknow sun. 

Lineups

Meerut Mavericks Probable XI: Swastik Chikara, Rituraj Sharma, Madhav Kaushik, Rinku Singh (c), Akshay Dubey (wk), Ritik Vats, Vijay Kumar, Yash Garg, Zeeshan Ansari, Kartik Tyagi, Ansh Dwivedi

Kashi Rudras Probable XI: Abhishek Goswami, Karan Sharma (c), Deepak Rana, Uvaish Ahmed (wk), Saksham Rai, Shubham Chaubey, Shivam Mavi, Shiva Singh, Kartik Yadav, Rishabh Rajput, Sunil Kumar, Atal Bihari-Rai  

Match Report

Opting to bat first, Kashi Rudras got off to a flying start with Abhishek Goswami capitalizing on the lack of swing to strike five boundaries in the first three overs. He added a six to his efforts in the next over as Karan Sharma contnued to play second fiddle at the other end, and had raced to 38 by the final over of the powerplay when Kartik Tyagi snuck in a yorker to end the 51-run stand. A significant lull followed as the skipper continued to struggle to find his footing, forcing Deepak Rana and Uvaish Ahmed to play the big shots much to Zeeshan Ansari's joy who sent them packing within a three-over spell. The situation became worse when Karan's attempt at breaking the shackles saw him depart for a timid 31 and leave the Rudras reeling at 102/4 after 14 overs. The onus was on Shubham Chaubey's shoulders to power the team to a par score, a responsibility he took on with aplomb with two huge blows and as many fours in a 15-ball cameo for 26 to help his side score 60 runs in the last six overs, despite a late burst from Tyagi limiting the damage to set his team 163 to chase.

In response, Swastik Chikara continued his scintillaying run at the top of the order with a slew of gap-piercing fours earluy on before heaving Shiva Singh for a 102-metre six in the fifth over. By the time he fell for 41(29) on the first ball of the ninth over, the Mavericks already had 70 runs on the board and were in prime position to chase down the score with eight wickets still in hand. However, the scalps of Madhav Kaushik and Akshay Dubey in quick succession brought Kashi roaring back into the game, even though the world-class Rinku Singh remained at the crease. The captain eased into his knock, knowing there were plenty of runs still to get as he stitched together a stand with Madhav Kaushik (34 off 27) but it was only a matter of time before he want ballistic. With 55 runs to get in the final five overs, the 27-year-old struck two maximums and a four in the 16th over before smashing three consecutive fours in the ensuing set to take his team within touching distance of victory. Shivam Mavi managed to eke out the consolation scalp of Kaushik in the penultimate over but it made little difference as Rinku swiped him for six over square leg two balls later to seal the win with eight balls to spare.       

Player of the Match

Rinku Singh unsurprisingly was named player of the match for his game-defining effort of 47 while striking at over two runs-a-ball, which included the skipper staying till the end in a tense chase and finishing things off with a maximum.

Scorecard