Arun Karthik’s unbeaten ton helps Royal Kings beat CSG

SALEM: Nellai Royal Kings defeated Chepauk Super Gillies by eight wickets in the first match of the doubleheader of TNPL on Saturday at Salem Cricket Foundation Ground.

The defending champion opted to bat first on a pitch that looked like a good batting track. However, Super Gillies found itself under pressure as Pradosh Ranjan Paul got out in the second over for two runs.

Baba Aparajith, who has been in good touch this season, began his innings well. When Narayan Jagadeesan fell to S Mohan Prasath for 15, he took on more responsibility to guide the innings until the end. In the 10th over, the all-rounder smashed three sixes off Sandeep Warrier to take the score to 71/2.

Lakshay Jain’s first over turned fruitful for the Royal Kings. He removed Sanjay Yadav first, followed by Lokesh Raj. Chepauk Super Gillies was 101/5 in 15 overs. Aparajith, who didn’t get much of a strike in the middle overs, reached his half-century in 40 deliveries. Later, he took on NS Harish for three sixes and a four before losing his wicket to M Poiyamozhi for 79 (51). This is the second TNPL 2023 half-century for the experienced all-rounder.

Chasing a modest total of 160, the Royal Kings had an excellent start to its innings, courtesy of captain KB Arun Karthik. The veteran Tamil Nadu star had a couple of bad outings recently at Dindigul. On Saturday, he was timing the ball well and was able to find boundaries with ease.

Arun Karthik made full use of the powerplay as he scored five fours and two sixes within six overs. The fielding changes didn’t stop the Royal Kings captain. He continued to deal with boundaries and got to his half-century in 25 deliveries, the fastest of the season. This was his 13th half-century of TNPL.

Sri Neranjan was a silent spectator during his captain’s show and was happy to give the strike back to him. The openers added 79 runs for the first wicket.

Arun Karthik and Rithik Easwaran kept the scoreboard ticking and had just three dot balls in the 61-run partnership for the second wicket. They added pressure on the Super Gillies fielders and managed to grab quick singles. Rithik Easwaran got out after making 26 (22). After his dismissal, G Ajitesh joined Arun Karthik.

However, he didn’t have much to do as the captain led the team from the front and took his side home with a huge six. With that, he also reached the third century of his TNPL career.

BRIEF SCORES: Chepauk Super Gillies 159/7 in 20 overs (B Aparajith 79, M Poiyamozhi 3/25) lost to Nellai Royal Kings 160/2 in 18.5 overs (KB Arun Karthik 104*)