MPL: Shidhaye heroics help Puneri Bappa beat Eagle Nashik Titans in Eliminator

Shidhaye’s unbeaten 13-ball 27 helped Puneri Bappa overhaul a target of 132 off 18 overs off the penultimate ball to end Eagle Nashik Titans’ campaign and set up a virtual semifinal date with Kolhapur Tuskers.

Advay Shidhaye in action. | Photo Credit: Special arrangement

Advay Shidhaye, the lanky left-handed, justified his billing of being a reliable finisher with a cameo that kept Puneri Bappa’s campaign alive in the Eliminator of the Shriram Capital Maharashtra Premier League (MPL) on Tuesday night.

Thanks to Shidhaye’s unbeaten 27 (13b, 1x4, 2x6), Puneri Bappa overhauled a target of 132 off 18 overs off the penultimate ball to end Eagle Nashik Titans’ campaign and set up a virtual semifinal date with Kolhapur Tuskers.

When Shidhaye took guard, the Bappa was reeling at 95 for five in the 14th over. Stand-in captain Rohan Damle - leading in Ruturaj Gaikwad’s absence since the India batter was resting before leaving for the West Indies tour - and Yash Kshirsagar, the two set batters, had been dismissed.

With the Titans’ pacer Rehan Khan spewing venom, Shidhaye had a reprieve in the 15th over after being dropped in the deep by Siddhesh Veer.

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Shidhaye pulled pacer Samadhan Pagare into the stands and followed it up with a fierce cut for a four in the 16th over to tilt the game in the Tuskers’ favour.

Left-arm spinner Akshay Waikar then bowled an outstanding penultimate over that yielded just three runs, including two leg-byes.

With two left-handers at the crease, Nashik captain Rahul Tripathi tossed the ball to offie Kaushal Tambe in a bid to defend 11 runs in the last over.

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Shidhaye took a calculated risk with seven required off three balls and heaved the ball into the stands and the Bappa cricketers, who had been involved in multiple heated exchanges with their opponents sprinting on to the field at 1.30 am in the night.

Earlier in the night, after the game got off to a start after a two-and-half-hour delay due to persistent rain, Tripathi (60, 41b, 9x4, 1x6) walked out to open and played a captain’s knock.

Despite Bhosale striking twice with his left-arm pace in the Powerplay, Tripathi’s classy knock had placed Nashik at 99 for three after 12 overs.

Just when the Titans was hoping to run away with the game, Puneri boys made a spirited comeback. The last six overs saw just 32 runs being scored as the Tuskers picked five wickets.