All-round Binny gives Belagavi second KPL 2017 win

Mysuru, 8 September 2017: There were some fine individual performances, but none more so than Stuart Binny’s. The all-rounder hammered a 46-ball 87 and followed that up with 2 for 37 as Belagavi Panthers eased to a 23-run win over Bengaluru Blasters in their Friday (8 September) afternoon clash at the S.D.N.R Ground in Mysuru.

Binny’s belligerence also earned him the orange cap. It had helped Belagavi post 192 for 7 after they opted to bat. But for a while, that target looked in threat as M Vishwanathan and Shishir Bhavane began the chase with vigour with an 85-run stand for the second wicket. However, once the stand was broken, Belagavi were able to apply the brakes, Bengaluru being restricted to 169 in 19.3 overs.

Belagavi had a wobbly start, losing their first four wickets within seven overs with just 32 runs on board. Prasidh Krishna started things off, inducing an edge off Mir Kaunain Abbas (5) before a mix-up between Shashindra (3) and BR Sharath saw the former being run out. Then, Abhishek Bhat, who claimed a five-for in Bengaluru’s previous clash against Hubli Tigers, saw off KN Bharath (1) and Sharath (19) in successive overs, thereby ensuring Binny walked into a pressure pot.

The first sign that this was Binny’s day came when Jeswanth Acharya dropped him at short fine leg when he was on 10. Binny proceeded to pick at least a boundary almost every over thereafter. Mitrakant Yadav, Pavan Deshpande and Rajoo Bhatkal, all faced the brunt of Binny’s blade, as he went about reviving the innings. Providing able support was S Rakshith, who scored at a healthy clip himself, and the two added an important 89 for the fifth wicket.

As the death overs approach, Binny shifted gears. Bhatkal was the recipient as he hit three fours and a six off the 15th over, taking 23 runs off it to power Belagavi’s total past the 100-run mark, Binny receiving a second reprieve when he was on fifty. Rakshith joined in, driving Mitrakant through the covers in the next over, but the stand was finally broken when, off the very next delivery, he came down the track and missed the ball completely to be bowled.

The scoring-rate didn’t suffer though. Stalin Hoover hit the ground running, picking sixes off Bhat and Prasidh. Binny weighed into Prasidh as well, and the 18th over yielded 22 runs. Hoover then holed out off V Koushik, and Binny followed suit in the final over, although only after punishing Prasidh for a low full toss. Kishore Kamat ensured Belagavi’s total reached the 190s with two more sixes off Prasidh.

They were chasing the highest target in the tournament so far, but Bengaluru’s batsmen were keen to show they were up for it. M Vishwanathan, the 37-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman, was connecting well with the bat, was finding it comfortable scoring on both sides of the wicket and had quite some muscle behind his hits. He took on Binny in the second over of the innings, with a six and four off the Belagavi all-rounder.

Nikin Jose was then dismissed by Hoover after a steady 13, but Shishir Bhavane joined Vishwanathan in the middle, and Belagavi struggled to break through.

The two worked well together, both capable of both attack and defence. It meant the Belagavi bowlers faced a two-pronged assault. They picked 15 runs off the eighth over sent down by Shubang Hegde and 16 off the next over sent down by Binny, Vishwanathan hammering yet another six. He brought up his half-century off 28 balls, and Bengaluru crossed the 100-run mark in the 11th over after the two picked 18 runs off Bharath.

However, things changed in a jiffy. Bhavane fell to Kamat, the leg-spinner, after miscuing an attempted slog for a 23-ball 34. The important Vishwanathan, having scored a powerful 35-ball 65, was run-out in the next over, after attempting a second run from an overthrow, and there began a slide that cost Bengaluru the match. Pavan Deshpande (3) popped a return catch to Binny and Bhatkal (1) holed out off Kamat, Abbas plucking out a stunning catch just inside the boundary rope. Acharya (6) became Binny’s second wicket and Manjesh Reddy (2) was trapped in front by Hoover.

Eventually, Bengaluru were bundled out, with Kamat ending with 4 for 26 in his 3.3 overs.

Brief scores: Belagavi Panthers 192 for 7 in 20 overs (Stuart Binny 87, S Rakshith 29; Prasidh Krishna 2-50, Abhishek Bhat 2-22) beat Bengaluru Blasters 169 in 19.3 overs (M Vishwanathan 65, Shishir Bhavane 34; Kishore Kamat 4-26, Stalin Hoover 2-29) by 23 runs.

Man of the Match: Stuart Binny (Belagavi Panthers)