Hyderabad finished their Col CK Nayudu Trophy campaign on a winning note as they scored a 24-run win over Bengal in the final league game at the Aditya Academy ground in Kolkata on Monday.
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Hyderabad, who were in the fifth position with 54 points before the start of the seventh-round game against Bengal, ended up in the 4th position with 67 points in the Group B. Vidarbha also had the same number of points but finished third because of a better net run rate. Mumbai and Rajasthan finished first and second respectively and made it to the knockouts from the group. If only the selectors had not tampered with the core of the Under-23 team, Hyderabad could have been in contention for a knock-out berth in the tournament.
https://khelkhiladis.com/are-selectors-weakening-the-under-23-team/
Who will be held accountable?
Despite all the tinkering, selection and administrative blunders like naming the squad for the Mumbai game just a day ahead of the game, the boys came back strongly to finish the tournament on a high. It is not the players or coaching staff’s fault that their campaign has ended so soon, but who will bell the cat?
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Accountability is not a buzzword in the Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA). Life will go on as if nothing happened. That’s the tragedy called the HCA, and cricket and cricketers continue to suffer despite not having a role to play.
Adnan and Rahul’s 32-run partnership made the difference
Resuming at their overnight score of 189 for eight, Hyderabad added 30 invaluable runs to their score as they were bowled out for 219. The runs scored on the final morning made all the difference for Hyderabad.
No.9 batter Mohd Abdul Adnan scored 22 of those runs as he and Rahul Karthikeya added 32 off 63 balls for the ninth wicket. Rahul (1) did not add to his overnight score but hung in there for 30 balls, which was a very valuable contribution, as Adnan did the scoring. Adnan remained unbeaten on 23 off 51 balls with two fours and a six.
Chasing 343 for victory, Bengal had a disastrous start as the lost wickets in a heap. Opener Ayush Kumar Singh (1) was run out by Pattapu Raghava with one on the board off the fourth ball of the innings. Bengal lost their second wicket when Hyderabad skipper P Aman Rao ran out Anas (4).
Bengal continued to lose wickets as Chandrahas Dash (26), Ravi Kumar (5), Prabhat Maury (5) were dismissed and the hosts slipped to 51 for five. Rahul Karthikeya took two of these three wickets, while Nitin Sai Yadav claimed one.
Shashank and Sumit put up a splendid fightback
Thereafter, Bengal skipper Shashank Singh and wicketkeeper Sumit Nag put up one of the most sensational fightbacks which brought the side back into contention. The kept the Hyderabad bowlers at bay and ensuring that Bengal lived to fight till the end of the day.
The duo added 188 runs off 278 balls for the sixth wicket to take the score to 239. Shashank Singh made 94 off 132 balls, while Sumit Nag scored a 146-ball 93 before falling to Nitin Sai Yadav. His knock contained 10 fours and two sixes.
With the tail in tow, Shashank fought on valiantly and chipped away at the target. However, it was too much for him to single-handedly accomplish. He was the last wicket to fall at 318 after making a brave 145 off 185 balls with 14 fours and three sixes.
Nitin took three for 91 and Rahul bagged two for 36, while Pranav Varma, Dinesh Rathod and Adnan took one wicket apiece.
Brief scores: Hyderabad 384 in 122.1 overs & 219 in 68 overs (A Avanish Rao 118, Vignesh Reddy 40, Mohd Abdul Adnan 23 no; Ravi Kumar 4/53, Irshad Alam 3/58) beat Bengal 261 in 83.2 overs & 318 in 79.3 overs (Shashank Singh 145, Sumit Nag 93; Nitin Sai Yadav 3/91, Rahul Karthikeya 2/36).
