MATCH REPORT
Follow UsThe ninth match of the 2023 Tamil Nadu Premier League witnessed Lyca Kovai Kings emerge as the winners against Chepauk Super Gillies in a repeat of last year's final at NPR College Ground.
Batting first, the Lyca Kovai Kings dominated right from the start after asking Chepauk Super Gillies to bat first. Gowtham Thamarai Kannan bowled the opening over, and he almost dismissed Jagadeesan Narayan, but the Chepauk Super Gillies captain was dropped in the slips. Gowtham Thamarai Kannan went wicketless but was one of the reasons for the Lyca Kovai Kings' win. He bowled 17 dot deliveries.
Jagadeesan Narayan couldn't make use of the drop-chance as he got out a couple of deliveries later to M Siddharth. This is the third time in three matches that Jagadeesan Narayan has gotten out to a left-arm spinner. M. Siddharth was excellent in his four overs. He went for just 24 runs.
Santosh Shiv S has struggled against the spinners in the past. Shahrukh Khan brought himself in next and dismissed the dangerous batter. This was yet another match-up that turned in favour of the Lyca Kovai Kings captain.
V Yudheeswaran was the pick of the bowlers for Lyca Kovai Kings today with 3/29. The 25-year-old dismissed Sanjay Yadav early but went for a four and a six in the same over. U Sasidev's hit off V Yudheeswaran marked the 100th six of TNPL 2023. Later in the inning, U. Sasidev got out to V. Yudheeswaran for 23 off 22 deliveries.
Along with S Harish Kumar, U Sasidev added 41 (32) for the 5th wicket. Sasidev played the anchor role well and provided the maximum strike to S. Harish Kumar. The latter ended with 32 (20). Chepauk Super Gillies reached 126/8 in their 20 overs. They were 61/5 at one point.
Chasing a below-par total, the Lyca Kovai Kings were off to a flying start. J. Suresh Kumar smashed back-to-back boundaries in the first over to kick off the chase. B. Sachin was the impact player for the Lyca Kovai Kings today. The opener joined hands with S Suresh Kumar, and the duo smashed four boundaries in seven deliveries at one point. Rahil S. Shah provided the first breakthrough for Chepauk Super Gillies. He dismissed B Sachin for 14 runs.
The Orange Cap Holder, B. Sai Sudharsan, did not disappoint as he continued his run fest. The left-handed batter complemented J. Suresh Kumar well, as the duo added 65 (52) for the second wicket and helped the team easily cross the line. J. Suresh Kumar was the second wicket to fall. The wicketkeeper fell three runs short of his half-century. The knock included eight fours and a six.
On the other hand, Sudharsan scored yet another half-century. This is the fifth consecutive half-century in the TNPL across two seasons for Sai Sudharsan. Notably, this is also his fourth successive half-century in T20s. After making heads turn in the IPL 2023 final, Sai Sudharsan has scored a hat-trick of half-centuries in this year's TNPL.
Sudharsan remained unbeaten on 64 runs and safely took Lyca Kovai Kings home by eight wickets. Rahil S. Shah and Lokesh Raj grabbed one wicket apiece for Chepauk Super Gillies.
This is the first loss for the Chepauk Super Gillies in the tournament. Earlier, the team had won both their matches. With this win, Lyca Kovai Kings will move into third place in the points table.
(Report and image credit - TNPL)
