The semifinals of the Kaka Venkataswamy Memorial Telangana Inter-District T20 League Phase ll turned out to be lopsided affairs as Khammam and Nizamabad scored comfortable victories over their respective rivals at the Gymkhana in Hyderabad on Friday.
Khammam thrashed Nalgonda by six wickets and Nizamabad did one better as they romped home by seven wickets against Adilabad.
In the first semifinal, Nalgonda won the toss and elected to bat first. They made a competitive 185 for six with Mani Kiran scoring 57 off 39 balls. He was ably supported by Jashwant Yadav, who made 49 off 29 balls, and Gnana Prakash, who scored a 26-ball 46.
For Khammam, S Vamsi emerged the top bowler as he took three for 28 and Shiva Nagendra bagged two for 35.
In reply, Khammam rode on half-centuries from Bunny and Teja Naidu to reach 186 for four. Bunny scored a 35-ball 64 and Teja made 50 off 34 balls. Mohammed Rizwan too joined the party with a 28-ball 41.
In the other semifinal, Adilabad won the toss and elected to bat. Barring A Santosh none of the other batters contributed much as Adilabad were bowled out for 168. Santosh struck a 38-ball 62, while Mohammad Afsan made 26 off 20 balls and Sai Charan contributed 25 off 16 balls. M Sai Prateek was the most successful bowler for Nizamabad with a three for 36 haul.
Srikar Reddy Yedla then hogged the limelight with a sparkling innings. Though he fell short of a century by the merest of margins, his knock ensured a comfortable win for Nizambad.
Nizamabad replied with 170 for three and booked their final berth against Khammam.
Srikar was out for 99 off 63 balls, while Vikram Jadav made 34 off 25 balls. Ismail Ahmed took three for 25 but lacked support from the others.
Brief scores: Nalgonda 185/6 in 20 overs (Mani Kiran 57, Jashwanth Yadav 49, Gnana Prakash 46; S Vamsi 3/28, Shiva Nagendra 2/35) lost to Khammam 186/4 in 20 overs (Bunny 64, Teja Naidu 50, Mohammed Rizwan 41). Adilabad 168 in 20 overs (A Santosh 62, Mohammad Afsan 26, Sai Charan 25; M Sai Pratheek 3/36) lost to Nizamabad 170/3 in 18.4 overs (Srikar Reddy Yedla 99, Vikram Jadav 34; Ismail Ahmed 3/25).
