TNPL 2018:Madurai Panthers snaps Tuti Patriots’ winning run

After restricting Tuti Patriots to 165/5, Madurai Panthers’ batsmen handled the chase extremely well and dominated the star-studded bowling line-up of Tuti Patriots to complete a comfortable win.

Captain Rohit Damodaren scored an aggressive 28 (20b, 2x4, 1x6) while his opening partner KB Arun Karthick scored a magnificent 59 (42b, 3x4, 4x6) to set the tone for the chase. Shijit Chandran 29 (23b, 2x4, 1x6) and J Kousik 38 n.o. (22b, 3x4, 2x6) helped seal a memorable win.

Earlier, Madurai Panthers was equally impressive with the ball. Patriots lost a wicket in the Powerplay for the first time in three matches when Abhishek Tanwar removed inform Kaushik Gandhi (11) in the third over.

Left-handed opener S Dinesh tried to speed up proceedings with a 35 (29b, 5x4, 1x6) but Madurai Panthers’ bowlers had things under control.

The third-wicket partnership of 69 (46b) between Anand Subramanian 42 (29b, 3x4, 1x6) and Akshay Srinivasan 44 (35b, 1x4, 3x6) and a late onslaught by R Sathish 24 n.o. (10b,3x6) lifted Tuti Patriots to its final total.

Tuti Patriots had won its previous two encounters comprehensively. Madurai Panthers, which began the tournament with a loss, now has two wins from three matches.

Reflecting on the defeat, U Sushil of Tuti Patriots said his team fell short by 10 runs. “We felt we were 10 runs short but we have a decent bowling line-up and were confident enough. We were looking to get wickets early, especially when someone like Arun Karthik was going strong. The Powerplay mattered in the end. We lost an early wicket and that put us under a bit of pressure but Panthers also bowled well, kept it tight and we didn’t want to lose another wicket and were cautious until the 10th over to stabilise and hopefully capitalize at the end.” 

BRIEF SCORES: Tuti Patriots in 165/5 in 20 overs (Anand Subramanian 44, Akshay Srinivasan 42, S Dinesh 35, Abhishek Tanwar 3-28) lost to Madurai Panthers 166/3 in 18.4 overs (KB Arun Karthick 59, J.Kousik 38*, Shijit Chandran 29, Ganesh Moorthi 1-22)