Maharaja Trophy: Bengaluru Blasters outshine Shivamogga Lions to mark third consecutive victory

Bengaluru (Karnataka) [India], August 19 (ANI): The Bengaluru Blaster logged their third consecutive victory as they defeated the Shivamogga Lions by seven wickets in the second fixture of the day at the Maharaja Trophy KSCA T20 here at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium.
On Sunday, Bhuvan Raju's unbeaten 59, complimented by key contributions from Mayank Agarwal (42) took the Blasters to a comfortable win with 2.4 overs to spare. Earlier in the evening, Shivamogga's Hardik Raj (69) struck the fastest half-century of the tournament in a bid to counterattack a clinical bowling performance from Bengaluru and post a total of 163/9.
The Bengaluru Blasters' openers rapidly diminished their target with Impact Player, Chethan LR (23) taking apart Sharath HS in a fiesta 19 run-over that included two sixes and a four, early on. While Chethan was dismissed after facing 12 deliveries by Anand Doddamani in the sixth over, the Blasters were well ahead of the required run rate finishing the powerplay at 61/1.
Mayank Agarawal's 33-ball knock which included four boundaries and a six ended as he became Doddamani's second scalp of the night in the tenth over. Coming in at number three, Bhuvan Raju got off the mark with a six and batted with freedom. He hit three fours, and three sixes as he completed his second consecutive half-century in 30 balls.
Suraj Ahuja (23) also contributed effectively, partnering with Bhuvan Raju to build a 66-run stand before being dismissed by Vasuki Koushik in the 17th over. Bhuvan Raju remained unbeaten to steer the Bengaluru Blasters to victory with seven wickets in hand and 2.4 overs to spare.
In the first innings, Bengaluru's Shubhang Hegde made early inroads for Bengaluru Blasters as he picked up Nihal Ullal (8) and Bharath Dhuri (29) in the powerplay. Opener Rohit K (2) also fell quickly at the hands of Aditya Goyal to leave Shivamogga Lions struggling at 44/3 by the end of the powerplay.
The innings continued to unravel as Dhruv Prabhakaran (8) and Abhinav Manohar (5) were scalped for single digits by Kranthi Kumar and Lavish Kaushal respectively, while S Shivraj (3) was dismissed by Mohsin Khan. It was the young Hardik Raj (69) who helped Shivamogga fight their way back to the contest.
Supported by Avinash D (10), who held up an end, Hardik Raj thumped four sixes and four boundaries to race to a 21-ball half-century that came when he creamed three boundaries of Shubhang Hegde. Soon after the partnership reached the fifty-mark, Avinash D would become Naveen MG's sole wicket of the night in the 17th over with the scoreline reading 131/7.
In the death overs, Hardik Raj continued his assault striking Naveen MG for another maximum before he was picked up by Lavish Kaushal in the final over. Meanwhile, Sharath HS (15*) made a vital contribution to remain unbeaten and help guide the Shivamogga Lions to 163/9 in their allotted time.
Brief Scores
Bengaluru Blasters won by 7 wickets
Shivamogga Lions 163/9 in 20 overs (Hardik Raj 69 runs off 33 balls, Bharath Dhuri 29 runs off 15 balls, Sharath HS 15 runs off 10 balls, Shubhang Hegde 2/32, Lavish Kaushal 2/34)
Bengaluru Blasters 168/3 in 17.2 overs in 20 overs (Bhuvan Raju 59 runs off 36 balls, Mayank Agarwal 42 runs off 34 balls, Chethan LR 23 runs off 12 balls, Anand Doddamani 2/23). (ANI)