Hyderabad, Jun 24 (PTI) Skipper Tanay Thyagarajan’s all-round performance powered Ranga Reddy Risers to a five-wicket victory over Medak Falcons in HCA’s Sreenidhi University TG20 here.
After restricting Medak Falcons to 164/8, the Risers overcame a mid-innings wobble through a partnership between Nanavath Rakesh and Nitin Sai Yadav, with the latter finishing the chase as the Risers reached the target with 10 balls to spare on Tuesday.
The Risers skipper first registered figures of 3/36 which included the scalps of both openers, before scoring a crucial 11-ball 21.
Falcons got off to a bright start as Purnanand Rao set the tone with a series of boundaries in the opening overs. He kept the scoreboard ticking, but Thyagarajan had struck the first blow, castling Shrunjith Reddy (6 off 5) in his first over.
Purnanand continued to apply pressure on the Risers’ bowling attack, but wickets kept falling at the other end. Nitin Sai Yadav then delivered a maiden in the final over of the powerplay as the Falcons reached 51/3.
Vikram Naik then joined forces with Naman Agarwal (37 off 30), and the pair rebuilt the innings through strike rotation and timely boundaries.
However, Thyagarajan returned to break the 76-run stand, taking his third wicket of the evening. Naman’s dismissal triggered a collapse and the Falcons eventually closed their innings at 164/8.
Aaron George and Avanish Rao gave the Risers the perfect start to their chase, taking the attack to the Falcons’ bowlers from the outset.
Falcons skipper Teja struck back in the third over, ending the opening stand by dismissing Aaron for a brisk 27 off 13 balls.
Avanish continued to score freely and kept the scoreboard moving.
Varun Yerram turned the game on its head with a double strike in the final over of the powerplay, removing Avanish for 25 off 12 balls and Aditya Javvaji (12 off 9) to leave the Risers in a spot of bother at 66/3.
The Falcons’ bowlers then tightened their grip on proceedings, restricting the flow of boundaries.
Sensing the need to shift momentum, Thyagarajan counterattacked with two more fours and a six during his quickfire 21 off 11 balls.
However, Ahwinan Ram struck at a crucial juncture to dismiss the Risers captain, reducing them to 117/5.
With 48 runs required from the final seven overs, responsibility fell on Nanavath Rakesh (37 not out off 33) and Nitin Sai Yadav (28 not out off 19).
The finishing touches came in the 19th over as Nitin launched the match-winning six to cap off the chase, guiding the Ranga Reddy Risers to victory with five wickets in hand and 10 balls to spare.
Brief Scores: Medak Falcons 164/8 in 20 overs (Vikram Naik 49, Purnanand Rao 38, Tanay Thyagarajan 3/36) Ranga Reddy Risers 167/5 in 18.2 overs (Nanavath Rakesh 37*, Nitin Sai Yadav 28 off 19, Varun Yerram 2/32) PTI APA DDV
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