In a young man’s format, two old warhorses cantered home. What a burst to the title!
Skipper R. Sathish and S. Vasanth Saravanan were the toast of Chepauk Super Gillies at the M.A. Chidambaram Stadium on Sunday.
The pressure was mounting and Albert Tuti Patriots were moving in for the kill. But then, Super Gillies did not wilt against its bogey team this time around.
These old soldiers…they never die really.
Sathish (23 not out, 16b, 2x6) and Saravanan (23 not out, 10b, 1x4, 2x6) gathered a hectic 52 runs in just 22 balls for an unbeaten fifth wicket as Super Gillies dethroned Albert Tuti Patriots in the summit clash of the Indian Cements-TNPL.
Chasing 144, Super Gillies required 22 runs off the last two overs. The side knocked it off in the 19th over of the innings sent by Washington Sundar. Saravanan closed out the match with a sequence 6, 6, and 4.
A crowd of around 20,000 was up on its feet. And to think that stroke-making on this pitch was largely demanding. The ball gripped the surface and there was some turn for the spinners.
In the pursuit, fluent opener K.H. Gopinath donned a key role with his 50 (38b, 2x4, 3x6).
Yet, these were phases when Patriots gradually began to tighten the screws. Left-arm spinner Aushik Srinivas bowled with control. And seamer Akash Sumra’s over — the eighth of the innings — against a struggling Sargunam was a maiden. Super Gillies had a battle on its hands.
Under pressure to keep the scoreboard moving, the side lost wickets, including that of big-hitter Antony Dhas and the well-set Gopinath.
Against the run of play, Sathish’s flat six off Athisayaraj signalled his intentions. It was a different game from then on.
The left-handed Abhinav Mukund (41, 38b, 4x4) alone came up with an innings of some substance for Patriots after the side elected to bat earlier in the night. S. P. Nathan delivered a few hefty blows but Super Gillies was on the ball in the end overs, striking with regularity.
Sai Kishore was impressive once again with his turn and bounce. In fact, the left-arm spin trio of Sai Kishore, V. Arun Kumar and R. Alexander contained and struck.
Arun Kumar’s twin-strike in quick time – Abhinav and Dinesh Karthik – were blows Super Gillies could not recover from. He bowled a flat trajectory outside off, with a packed off-side field.
Seamer Yo Mahesh, too, made an impression at the death, varying his pace, sending down effective cutters, and employing the short ball judiciously.
As the innings progressed, the Super Gillies fielding became increasingly sharp. Catches were gobbled up in the deep and ’keeper Karthik, in particular, caught the eye with his smart glovework.
Apart from sending down his seamers cleverly — he is a canny operator in this format — Sathish led with imagination. And the finish for him and his team was a dream within a dream.
The scores: Albert Tuti Patriots 143 for eight in 20 overs (Abhonav Mukund 41, Sai Kishore two for 25, Arun Kumar two for 29) lost to Chepauk Super Gillies 145 for four in 19 overs (K.H. Gopinath 50, Athisayaraj Davidson two for 30).