The UP T20 (Uttar Pradesh T20) League saw two games on Monday, September 2, at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. These fixtures had a bearing on the standings of the teams.
In a table-toppers clash, Meerut Mavericks prevailed over the Kashi Rudras to retain the top position with five victories in six games and a net run rate of +2.306. The Rudras are second with four wins in six appearances.
Despite a win on Monday, Noida Super Kings are languishing at the bottom of the table with two victories in six games. Meanwhile, Kanpur Superstars are fifth with two victories in five outings and a better NRR than the Super Kings.
After facing a loss against the Super Kings, Gorakhpur Lions are still in fourth place with two wins in six games. Lucknow Falcons are third on the table with the same number of victories from five matches and a better NRR than the Lions.
On that note, let’s look at the action that transpired on Monday.
UP T20 League 2024: Meerut Mavericks maintain dominance with a big victory
UP T20 League's first game on Monday between Meerut Mavericks and Kashi Rudras was reduced to 18 overs a side due to rain. However, the rain showers erupted again and both teams were set up for a nine-over-per-side contest.
Despite losing Akshay Dubey for a duck, the Mavericks found support from Swastik Chikara and Madhav Kaushik. Chikara was at his lethal best against Karan Chaudhary, smashing him for four consecutive sixes to slam a fifty off 17 balls.
Chikara continued his terrific ball-striking to hit three sixes against Shivam Mavi in the eighth over before getting dismissed in the same over for 85 off 27 balls. His innings consisted of four fours and 10 maximums. Kaushik remained unbeaten on 28 off 22 as the Mavericks posted 118/3 in nine overs.
In reply, Yashovardhan Singh (28* off 14) was the only key run-scorer as the Rudras ended on 66/7 and lost by 50 runs (DLS target 117).
The second game saw Gorakhpur Lions bat first against the Noida Super Kings and lose three wickets inside the powerplay overs. However, Siddharth Sarvan Yadav (57 off 38) and skipper Akshdeep Nath (56* off 44) helped them get back on track. Hardeep Singh (26 off 14) provided a flourish to help them reach 165. Ajay Kumar and Mohammad Sharim picked three wickets each.
Thereafter, Rahul Raj and Kavya Teotia (30) stitched a 76-run stand for the Super Kings. Raj went on to slam 72 off 48 with seven fours and four sixes to put the team on the front foot. Other batters did well to help the team chase down the target under 19 overs.
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