Published: March 27, 2026 at 7:56 pm
Imperial Cricket Club pulled off a thrilling one-wicket victory over Charminar Cricket Club in a pulsating final of the HCA’s B Division (2-day) League Championship at the Dr N Kondal Rao Cricket Stadium on Friday.
Chasing Charminar’s imposing 397, Imperial resumed their innings at 33 without loss but suffered a blow immediately. Imperial lost opener A Bharath Kumar (13) at 37. Bharath was caught by Aditya Singh Rathore off Asad Ahmed.
Imperial opener S Lokanath scored a 122-ball 136 with 20 hits to the fence and one over it before he was run out by Varun Dhatrak
But Charminar’s hopes of making further inroads suffered a massive blow as opener S Lokanath and Jaikeerth Reddy stonewalled all their efforts. The duo added 101 off 130 balls for the second wicket before Jaikeerth Reddy was out for 19 off 69 balls. Lokanath’s contribution to the partnership was 78 off 61 balls.
Lokanath and Lokesh Myaka then added 70 off 118 balls before Lokanath was run out by Varun Dhatrak. He had scored a 122-ball 136 with 20 hits to the fence and one over it.
Lokesh stands firm for Imperial
Captain Lokesh then found an able partner in Siddu Nayak and the duo took the score to 324 with a 116-run partnership for the fourth wicket. It came off 109 balls with Siddu doing the bulk of the scoring. He scored 69 off 38 balls with 11 fours and a six before he fell to Varun Dhatrak. Lokesh contributed 47 off 71 balls.
Varun struck off the next ball as he sent back Harihar G (0), but N Shiva Kumar prevented Varun from getting a hat-trick. However, Varun got rid of Shiva (20) to reduce Imperial to 346 for six.
But Lokesh and G Ishanth Reddy added 47 vital runs off 65 balls before Lokesh fell. Ishanth contributed 19 off 35 balls, while Lokesh made 23 off 30 balls. Lokesh was trapped leg before by A Nithin Verma but not before he made a 193-ball 105 with 11 fours.
Imperial skipper Lokesh Myaka made a 193-ball 105 with 11 fours. He fell with his team needing five runs for victory
Lokesh fell at 393 and Imperial still needed five runs for victory, but what followed was high drama as Charminar hit back strongly.
A run later, N Naveen KUmar (0) was trapped leg before by Ujwal Yadav and three runs later Pavan Teja D (0) was caught leg before by Nithin Varma and Imperial were reduced to 397 for nine. They just needed a run for victory with one wicket in hand.
No.11 bat P Abhinandan struck a boundary off the third ball he faced to send the Imperial players into jubilation.
Off-spinner Varun Dhatrak took three for 73, while pacer Nithin Varama took two for 64 and offie Ujjwal Yadav claimed two for 76.
Siddu Nayak had taken five for 83 to restrict Charminar to 397
On the first day, Siddu Nayak had taken five for 83 to restrict Charminar to 397.
Siddu Nayak bags five wickets to help Imperial restrict Charminar to 397 in B Division final
HCA lauds teams and staff for conduct of tournament
The Hyderabad Cricket Association (HCA) applauded Imperial Cricket Club for winning the B Division 2-Day Championship 2025–26. “The final marked a fitting conclusion to a highly competitive season, showcasing high-quality cricket and outstanding individual performances,” an HCA release said.
“Imperial Cricket Club delivered a dominant all-round performance to secure the championship title, excelling with both bat and ball in the final,” it said.
The HCA also appreciated all the participating teams, match officials and umpires, ground and support staff for their contribution in the successful conduct of the tournament.
Brief scores: Charminar 397 in 71 overs lost to Imperial CC 401/9 in 85 overs (S Loknath 136, Lokesh Myaka 105, Siddu Nayak 69; Varun Dhatrak 3/73).
