Ton-up Abhirath, Ganesh and Ajay Goud help Hyderabad E-Champions march into playoffs

Skipper Abhirath Reddy, who slammed an unbeaten century, and Ganesh Gadugu led the charge for Hyderabad E-Champions as they continued their unbeaten run with a six-wicket win against Warangal Warriors in the Hyderabad Cricket Association’s TG20 at the Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad on Wednesday. The victory ensured that E-Champions qualify for the Playoffs.

After narrowly missing out on a couple of occasions, Abhirath registered his maiden ton in the TG20 2026. The Orange Cap holder continued to pile on the runs for his side with a stellar 101 not out of 43 balls, which included seven fours and nine sixes.

Ajay Dev Goud of Hyderabad E-Champions bowls during their match against Warangal Warriors at Rajiv Gandhi International Cricket Stadium in Hyderabad on Wednesday. Pics: Vipin Pawar / CREIMAS

Ganesh Gadugu also played his part, scoring 50 off 31 balls with one four and five sixes, after the bowlers, led by Purple Cap holder Ajay Dev Goud (3 for 27), restricted the Warriors to 173 for 9.

Ajay Dev Goud strikes early

Opting to bat first, Warriors made a watchful start before their openers unfurled a range of strokes. They piled up 64 runs in the first five overs to set the platform for their side. However, Ajay showed why he’s on top of the wicket-takers list, as he sent back both openers in the final over of the powerplay.

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Harshit Choudhary (22 of 14 balls with one four and two sixes) was the first to be dismissed with Aman Rao Perala also falling after a quickfire 20-ball 45 with seven fours and two sixes. The twin strikers wrestled back momentum for the E-Champions. Shanmukha Ashwin got the better of Murugan Abhishek (4 off 7 balls) soon after, putting Warriors further into trouble.

Sunkari Dheeraj (18 off 16 bablls) and Rishiket Sisodia stitched together a 50-run stand to stabilise the innings with the latter doing the heavy lifting. Rishiket found the odd boundary and rotated strike regularly to keep the scoreboard ticking with his partner. Unfortunately for the Warriors, Rishiket fell in an attempt to up the ante with Pranav Varma getting the better of him in the 15th over, putting an end to his 32-ball 38 which contained three fours and a six.

Abhirath Reddy Mandadi essays a shot during his unbeaten 101 against Warangal Warriors

That triggered a series of wickets with the Warriors stumbling at the backend of the innings. Akhil Rathod bagged his first wicket to dismiss Sunkari, while Ajay continued his wicket-taking streak by dismissing Adi Mani Kiran (5 off 6 balls). Dev Mehta also got rid of Bhavesh Seth (6 off 8 balls) as the Warriors found themselves at 142 for 7.

Shaunak Kulkarni’s fiery 7-ball 22-run cameo powered his side to a strong finish before he fell to Abhirath in the penultimate over. In the end, Warriors posted a total of 173 for 9 at the end of 20 overs.

Abhirath leads the charge

E-Champions laid down an early marker of intent at the beginning of their run chase, scoring 27 runs in the first couple of overs with their captain leading the charge. However, they found themselves in a spot of bother as the Warriors returned strongly to bag three wickets in the powerplay, achieving that feat for the first time in the tournament.

Pallepati Kranthi struck a crucial double blow in the third over, dismissing Sai Vikas Reddy (10 off 7 balls) and Ajay Goud (0 off 2 balls). Anvith Reddy (4 off 2 balls) was dismissed by Salman Khan in the following over as he pegged things back for the Warriors.

Ganesh Gadugu of Hyderabad E-Champions continued with his rich vein of form with, yet another half-century. Pic: Sumeet Parmar / CREIMAS

With the game hanging in the balance, Abhirath and Ganesh Gadugu once again showed why they’re vital cogs of the E-Champions batting unit. They displayed immense maturity to keep the required run rate within control as they built a 77-run stand in which Ganesh was the aggressor.

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The district player smashed his second half-century of the tournament, reaching the milestone in 30 balls to put his side in cruise control. Shaunak broke the partnership by dismissing Ganesh in the 12th over, but the writing was on the wall by then.

Abhirath effortlessly switched gears to notch up his fifty in 28 balls and unleash an array of strokes to finish things off in a hurry. He concluded the run chase on a high, launching a towering six over long-off to amass his century and secure a comprehensive win for his side with 27 balls to spare.

Brief scores: Warangal Warriors 173 for 9 in 20 overs (Aman Rao Perala 45, Rishiket Sisodia 38, Shaunak Kulkarni 24, Harshit Choudhary 22; Ajay Dev Goud 3/27) lost to Hyderabad E-Champions 178 for 4 in 15.3 overs (Abhirath Reddy 101 not out, Ganesh Gadugu 50).

Player of the match: Abhirath Reddy