Abhirath, Ganesh fire unbeaten Hyderabad E-Champions to 56-run victory over Khammam

Hyderabad E-Champions are having a rollicking time in the HCA’s TG20 as they continue to decimate their rivals nonchalantly. On Monday night, they produced a dominant all-round show to record a commanding 56-run victory over Khammam Aces at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad.

Ganesh is an answer to HCA’s so-called apathy of district cricket, all-rounder lauds TG20

A blistering half-century from skipper Abhirath Reddy coupled with valuable contributions from district player Ganesh Gadugu as well as Anvith Reddy, and disciplined bowling led by Sriniketh and Ajay Dev Goud helped the E-Champions defend 211 and extend their impressive unbeaten run at the top of the table.

Abhirath, Ajay Dev top the charts

Meanwhile, Abhirath’s impressive 59 off 26 balls with five fours and an equal number of sixes puts him on top of the Orange Cap standings with 252 runs to his name. Adding to the team’s impressive run, Ajay Dev also took his place at the top of the Purple Cap standings with 10 wickets to his name.

Ganesh Gadugu of Hyderabad E-Champions plays a shot in their TG20 match against Khammam Aces at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad on Monday night. Pics: Vipin Pawar / CREIMAS

E-Champions recovered from a watchful start through an explosive opening partnership between Sai Vikas Reddy (22 off 20 balls with three fours) and Abhirath. The skipper then took the attack to the bowlers with a flurry of boundaries and sixes, including a 24-run fifth over, as the E-Champions raced to 77 for 1 at the end of the powerplay before Ved Reddy dismissed him.

Sai Vikas continued to anchor the innings alongside Anvith Reddy (32 off 21 balls with two fours and a six) as the E-Champions crossed the 100-run mark in the 11th over. Ved then removed Sai Vikas, while Shanmukha Ashwin’s quickfire cameo of 19 in 13 balls featuring two sixes kept the momentum going before GSK Reddy struck.

Anvith and Ganesh Gadugu (44 off 21 ball with three fours and an equal number of sixes) followed up with a brisk partnership of 31 runs in 16 balls to take the score to 136 for 3 after 13 overs.

Ganesh accelerated brilliantly at the death, striking two sixes off Vidyananda Reddy before Anvith’s run-out briefly slowed the innings. Pranav Varma (18 off 13 balls) chipped in with timely boundaries as Hyderabad E-Champions surged past 170 with four overs remaining.

K Himateja made a fighting knock of 64 runs in 44 balls with five fours and four sixes

Saaketh Dhatrak picked up two wickets in the penultimate over before Sahendra Mallu claimed two more in the final over, including Ganesh and Ajay Dev (6 off 2 balls). Despite the late collapse, E-Champions finished with a formidable 211 for 9.

Khammam falter in chase

With a tough target to chase down, Khammam Aces endured a shaky start to the chase, losing GSK Reddy (7 off 5 balls) in the second over despite a brisk beginning from Wafi Kachchhi (21 off 15 balls with two fours and a six) and Himateja Kodimela. Wafi looked dangerous with a couple of boundaries but was dismissed by Sriniketh in the fifth over, while Mayank Gupta (5 off 8 balls) struggled to accelerate as the Aces reached 50 for 2 at the end of the powerplay.

The innings lost further momentum through the middle overs as Ashwin and Anvith kept the scoring in check. Ashwin accounted for Mayank, while Anvith removed Mickil Jaiswal (3 off 8 balls) to leave the Aces at 68 for 4 after 10 overs. Himateja, however, kept the chase alive with an aggressive counterattack, smashing two sixes and a four off Akhil Rathod before finding support from Prateek Reddy (11 off 12 balls).

Ajay Dev Goud of Hyderabad E-Champions celebrates the wicket of Sahendra Mallu of Khammam Aces 

The pair stitched together a useful stand, with Himateja continuing to find the boundary and Prateek chipping in with a crucial six to take the Aces past the 100-run mark. However, Sriniketh broke the partnership by dismissing Prateek, before Ajay Dev struck in the following over to remove the well-set Himateja after his fighting knock of 64 runs in 44 balls with five fours and four sixes.

Aces’ hopes of a late comeback faded in the death overs despite a few blows from Sahendra Mallu (16 off 9 balls). Ajay Dev struck a crucial blow by dismissing Sahendra in the 18th over before Ganesh Gadugu, who got to bowl only one over, wrapped up the innings with two wickets in the final over, restricting the Aces to 155 for 9 in 20 overs.

Brief scores: Hyderabad E-Champions 211 for 9 in 20 overs (Abhirath Reddy 59, Ganesh Gadugu 44, C Anvith Reddy 32, S Vikas Reddy 22; Ved Reddy 2/24, Sahendra Mallu 2/35, Venkat Dhatrak 2/30) beat Khammam Aces 155 for 9 in 20 overs (Himateja Kodimela 64, Wafi Kachchhi 21, K. Sriniketh 3/28, Ajay Dev Goud 2/36, Ganesh Gadugu 2/2).

Player of the match: K Sriniketh