Indore, June 15 (IANS) Rewa Jaguars pacer Naveen Chouhan stole the spotlight in the Madhya Pradesh League (MPL) T20 Scindia Cup 2026 with a sensational hattrick in the final over, helping his side secure a 23-run victory over Gwalior Cheetahs in yet another high-scoring encounter at the Holkar Stadium in Indore. This is the season’s first hattrick.

Batting first, Rewa Jaguars piled up a formidable 238/6 in their 20 overs, powered by explosive knocks from Akshat Raghuwanshi, Anant Verma and Sagar Solanki.

The Jaguars suffered an early setback when Prithviraj Tomar departed for 15 off just 8 balls. However, Akshat Raghuwanshi and Arham Aqueel steadied the innings with a brilliant 82-run partnership. Aqueel contributed 37 off 29 deliveries before being dismissed, while Raghuwanshi followed soon after for a well-made 60 off 33 balls.

Anant Verma and Sagar Solanki then carried the momentum forward with a 46-run stand for the fourth wicket. Verma played an entertaining cameo of 44 off just 19 balls before being dismissed, while Atharva Mahajan fell on the very first ball he faced, leaving the Jaguars at 185/5.

Solanki then anchored the latter half of the innings before launching a fierce assault in the death overs. He remained unbeaten on 58 off 27 balls, an innings featuring four sixes and three boundaries, helping Rewa post a daunting total.

For Gwalior Cheetahs, Kartik Parihar was the standout bowler, returning with figures of 3/29 from his four overs.

In response, Gwalior Cheetahs endured an early setback, losing Kartik Parihar on just the second ball of the innings. Parth Chaudhary and Kuldeep Gehi revived the chase with a 51-run partnership for the second wicket. Gehi scored 27 off 15 balls before departing, and the Cheetahs continued to lose wickets at regular intervals.

With the score at 115/4, captain Rajat Patidar and Vikas Sharma launched a counterattack, adding 39 runs together. Patidar played a captain’s knock of 45 off 23 deliveries before being dismissed, while Sharma chipped in with 31 off 18 balls. Their departures left the Cheetahs struggling at 174/6 in the 16th over.

Arpit Patel kept the contest alive with some powerful strokeplay, but the target eventually proved too steep.

The defining moment of the match came in the final over when Naveen Chouhan produced the first hattrick of MPL 2026. The pacer dismissed Ishan Afridi, Akash Singh and Saumy Pandey off successive deliveries, finishing with outstanding figures of 3/11. His late burst ensured Gwalior Cheetahs were restricted to 215/9, handing Rewa Jaguars a victory.

Reflecting on the team’s win, Sagar Solanki said, “Our openers gave us a very good start. Akshat took a lot of responsibility at the top and played a crucial role in setting the platform. When I went in to bat, my mindset was simple, spend some time at the crease, get set, and then capitalise on the scoring opportunities. Anant was batting beautifully at the other end and he kept telling me to take my time because once I got set, I could finish strongly. That partnership helped us build towards a big total.”

Talking about his hattrick, Naveen said, “Taking the first hattrick of the season feels really special. Any bowler would be happy to achieve something like this. To be honest, when I was bowling that final over, I wasn’t thinking too much about the hattrick. My captain had told me there was a left-hander on strike, so the plan was simply to bowl a good off-cutter and execute it well. Thankfully, it worked in my favour.”

–IANS

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