Hubballi, July 1 (IANS) Rohan Patil and Praveen Dubey struck half-centuries while Nischith Rao bagged three wickets as Bengaluru Blasters withstood a spirited fightback from Hubli Tigers to register a thrilling two-run victory in the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 Tournament in Hubballi on Wednesday.

Chasing 204 for victory, Hubli Tigers were buoyed by crucial contributions from Aneeshwar Gautam (34 off 23), Shivkumar Rakshith (41 off 30), and a blistering 60 off just 22 balls from Manvanth Kumar. Abhinav Manohar also chipped in with 21 off 15 deliveries as the Tigers took the chase down to the final ball.

Needing five runs off the last delivery, the Tigers eventually finished on 201/7 after the dismissals of Manohar and Manvanth at crucial stages halted their late charge. Nischith Rao (3/27) and Vidwath Kaverappa (2/55) shone with the ball for the Blasters.

The victory was Bengaluru Blasters’ sixth in seven matches, taking them to 12 points and strengthening their position at the top of the standings. Hubli Tigers, meanwhile, suffered their third defeat of the campaign.

Earlier, Bengaluru Blasters posted 203/7 after half-centuries from Rohan Patil (64 off 38) and Praveen Dubey (51 off 28). The pair played key roles in building the innings after Rohan and Samit Dravid (32 off 23) had added 70 runs for the second wicket.

Rohan then shared a valuable 51-run partnership with Praveen Dubey to keep the momentum going before Shivraj chipped in with an express knock of 23 runs in just seven balls towards the end of the innings.

Vaibhav Sharma (3/38) and Abhishek Ahlawat (2/39) were the pick of the Hubli Tigers’ bowling attack.

The win continued Bengaluru Blasters’ impressive run in the tournament after victories over Gulbarga Mystics, Shivamogga Yodhas, Coastal Kings Mangaluru (twice), and another win over Shivamogga Yodhas. Their only defeat so far came against the Mysore Warriors.

Brief scores:

Bengaluru Blasters 203/7 in 20 overs (Rohan Patil 64, Samit Dravid 32, Praveen Dubey 51; Vaibhav Sharma 3/38, Abhishek Ahlawat 2/39) beat Hubli Tigers 201/7 in 20 overs (Hardik Raj 25, Aneeshwar Gautam 34, Shivkumar Rakshith 41, Manvanth Kumar 60; Nischith Rao 3/27, Vidwath Kaverappa 2/55) by 2 runs.

–IANS

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