Published: June 13, 2026 at 12:30 pm
Tungabadra Warriors managed to eke out a two-wicket win over Royals of Rayalaseema in a thrilling encounter of the Andhra Premier League 2026 at the ACA-VDCA International Cricket Stadium in Visakhapatnam on Friday night.
Tungabhadra Warriors skipper CR Gnaneswar won the toss and asked Royals of Rayalaseema to bat first. Ch Stephen struck the first blow with the fifth ball of the innings when he had M Vamsi Krishna (1) caught behind by Datta with three on the board.
However, Shaik Rasheed and skipper S Dhruva Kumar steadied the innings with some smart play. The duo added 79 for the second wicket off 53 balls to pull things back in favour of Royals of Rayalaseema. Sai Charan broke the partnership when he had Rasheed caught by M Deepak. Rasheed made a compact 31-ball 41 with seven boundaries.
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Dhruva too fell soon thereafter, after making 51 off 30 ballls with three fours and four sixes. He was caught by his counterpart Gnaneswar off K Anand Josiah.
Royals of Rayalaseema began to lose steam as the runs dried up. Y Teja Reddy was run out for 3 and Y Vasu was caught and bowled by Saurabh for 4 as Royals of Rayalaseema were reduced to 127 for five.
But what followed was pure mayhem as the Tungabadra Warriors gained complete ascendancy. The bowlers led by Stephen, Deepak and Sai Charan decimated the Royals of Rayalaseema batting.
From 127 for five, the Royals of Rayalaseema plunged to 148 all out in 18.2 overs. GSP Teja made 22 but the rest of the cast just succumbed to the pressure.
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Stephen finished with figures of two for 17, M Deepak got two for 20 and N Sai Charan claimed two for 20.
Tungabadra make solid start
Tungabadra Warriors, in reply, made a solid start with openers Gnaneswar and MS Samanyu Datta (11) adding 39 for the opening wicket. Vasu trapped Datta leg before and a run later repeated the act against Gnaneswar, who fell for a 19-ball 28 with four boundaries and a six.
KSS Jayanth and G Rohit then added 41 off 25 balls to steady the boat before Rohit was caught by Rasheed of Pardha Saradhi for a 14-ball 25. Ganesh then had M Datta Reddy (0) caught behind by Vamsi Krishna as Tungabadra Warriors were reduced to 86 for four.
Jayanth became Vasu’s third victim as he fell after making 26 off 25 balls. K Anand Josiah (14) was the sixth wicket to fall as he was caught by GSP Teja off Karthik.
At 111 for six, Tungabadra Warriors were in a not too happy situation, but Saurabh Kumar and SH Srinivas stitched a crucial 27-run partnership off 15 balls to take the Warriors closer to their target. Srinivas (11) was caught by Vasu off Ganesh and Saurabh was caught behind by Vamsi Krishna off Karthik Raman as the Warriors were reduced to 140 for eight in 18.4 overs.
They still needed nine runs off 8 balls with two wickets in hand. And the tension was palpable not only on the field but also among the fans in the stands.
However, N Sai Charan (6 not out) and M Deepak (3 not out) got the runs as the match went to the last ball of the innings. A run of the last ball sealed the issue in favour of Tungabadra Warriors. Saurabh Kumar was adjudged Player of the Match.
Brief scores: Royals of Rayalaseema 148 in 18.2 overs (Shaik Rasheed 41, S Dhruva Kumar 51, GSP Teja 22; Ch Stephen 2/17, M Deepak 2/25, N Sai Charan 2/20) lost to Tungabadra Warriors 149 for eight in 20 overs (CR Gnaneswar 28, KSS Jayanth 26, G Rohoit 25, Saurabh Kumar 21; Y Vasu 3/17, SP Ganesh 2/19, Karthik Raman 2/26)
