Lucknow, Aug 20 (IANS) Anivesh Choudhary produced a sensational late blitz as Noida Kings pulled off a dramatic three-wicket victory over Gaur Gorakhpur Lions in a high-scoring UP T20 League clash at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow on Thursday.
Chasing a target of 186, Noida Kings were in dire straits — requiring 18 runs off the final six deliveries. Choudhary, who remained unbeaten on an explosive 34 off just 15 balls, smashed two consecutive sixes, followed by taking two runs and hitting a boundary on the penultimate ball to seal a memorable win for his team with a ball to spare.
Earlier, opting to bat first, Gaur Gorakhpur Lions rode on a strong start to post 185/9 in their 20 overs. Openers Abhay Pratap Singh and skipper Aryan Juyal stitched a solid 72-run partnership to set the foundation for a big total.
Abhay eventually top-scored with a 41-ball 70, while Siddharth Yadav chipped in with a rapid 51 off 28 deliveries. For the Kings, Bobby Yadav was the star performer with the ball, picking up 4-48 to stem the run flow late in the innings.
The match had earlier been inaugurated by Dr. Raj Shekhar (IAS), Managing Director of UP Jal Nigam (Rural), who performed the traditional Bell Ringing Ceremony in the presence of UP T20 League Governing Council Chairman Dr. Sanjay Kapoor, member Sanjeev Kumar Singh, and former India cricketer Manvinder Bisla.
In the chase, Noida Kings suffered an early top-order collapse, slumping to 46/3 inside the powerplay with Vasu Vats (3-38) doing early damage. Aditya Sharma (39) and Ravi Singh (49 off 28 balls) stabilised the chase with a crucial 70-run fourth-wicket stand.
But a middle-order wobble left Noida needing 23 runs off the final two overs. After Abdul Rehman conceded just five runs in the 19th over, and Noida lost a wicket to a run-out on the first ball of the final over, Choudhary took charge to pull off a sensational victory out of nowhere.
–IANS
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