Namma Shivamogga stun defending champs on KPL debut

Namma Shivamogga made their Karnataka Premier League (KPL) debut in splendid fashion, claiming a six-wicket win over defending champs Mysuru Warriors in the second contest of the opening day at the Rajnagar cricket stadium here on Thursday evening. In a pulsating tie, chasing Warriors' 160/6, Shivamogga reached their target with four balls to spare powered by a 63-run partnership between Shreyas Gopal (49) and skipper Stuart Binny (25) for the fourth wicket.

Playing under lights, Shivamogga put Manish Pandey and his men to bat first. Arjun Hoysala (44) and Pandey (26) gave Warriors a steady start, putting on 55 runs for the opening wicket. The pair, besides capitalising on the short, over-pitched and bad deliveries, kept the scoreboard ticking with quick singles.

Warriors stuttered a little when they lost CM Gautam and Manjesh Reddy (45) in quick succession, but recovered well to post a competitive total following a 11 ball-26 cameo from K Gowtham, who struck three fours and a six. Sinan Abdul Khader was the most successful bowler for Shivamogga with figures of 2-35.

Shivamogga's victory march was led by all-round Shreyas Gopal's 30-ball 49. "I was disappointed with my bowling so felt the need to make a contribution with the bat to make up for the runs I gave away ," Gopal said later.

Brief scores: Mysuru Warriors 160/6 in 20 overs (Manjesh Reddy 45, A Hoysala 44; SA Khader 2/35) lost to Namma Shivamogga 161/4 in 19.2 overs (S Gopal 49*, S Kirmani 29; Shantharaju G 2/35)