TNPL 2018: Ruby Trichy Warriors make it two in a row

An all-round effort from Ganapathy Chandrasekhar helped Ruby Trichy Warriors make it two wins out of two as they beat the defending champions Chepauk Super Gillies by 31 runs in the third match of TNPL 2018 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai. After a 5-ball 26, Ganapathy finished with figures of 5/19 to help his side go to the top of the TNPL 2018 points table.

Chasing 181 for victory, the defending champions needed to get off to a great start but they got the exact opposite as Ganapathy's dream day continued with the ball. He got two wickets in his first over and the Super Gillies were never really in the contest after that.

They were always behind the eight ball and not only did they slump to 40/4 in 7 overs but also never really got in touch with the required run rate. Despite a 62-run fifth-wicket partnership between U Sasidev and B Rahul, Hemang Badani's side failed to make it a real contest after Ganapathy's three wickets with the new ball.

Although there were a few lusty blows towards the end, they merely delayed the inevitable as they finished on 149/9 from their 20 overs. The pick of the Warriors was undoubtedly the all-rounder Ganapathy, who finished with figures of 5/19 from his four overs.

Earlier in the game, Super Gillies won the toss and elected to field first and were immediately made to regret their decision as the Warriors raced off to a fast start. But the Super Gillies pegged things back and wrestled control before the end of the powerplay. And that brought Baba Indrajith and S Suresh Kumar to the crease.

The pair started slowly but then got going as the game wore on. They added 113 runs for the third wicket but despite all that, the Warriors never really ran away with the game. But the fall of Indrajith brought Ganapathy Chandrasekhar to the crease and his 5-ball blitzkrieg included three sixes and two fours.

The last two overs went for 45 runs as both Suresh and Ganapathy launched the ball into the stands at will. Their late fireworks helped the Warriors post an above-par total and the all-rounder Ganapathy continued his rich vein of form with the ball as well as he picked up three wickets to cap off a match-winning performance.

The turning point of the game: The last two overs of the Ruby Trichy Warriors' innings saw them score 45 runs and that helped them turn a sub-par total into a match-winning one.

Brief scores: Ruby Trichy Warriors 180/4 from 20 overs (S Suresh Kumar 74, B Indrajith 53, Ganapathy Chandrasekhar 26*, R Vishaal 2/36) beat Chepauk Super Gillies 149/9 from 20 overs ( B Rahul 53, U Sasidev 30, Ganapathy Chandrasekhar 5/19) by 31 runs.

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