Bengaluru: Hubli Tigers and Belagavi Panthers put on a fine show in the inaugural match of this year’s Karbonn Smartphones KPL at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru yesterday taking the sixth edition of the tournament off to a flier. In the end, Hubli took home all the points, thanks to K.V. Siddharth’s brilliant unbeaten 61 of 51 balls. Hubli opted to bowl, and led by Captain R.Vinay Kumar from the front, made early inroads into the significant Belagavi batting line-up. Vinay, Abhishek Sakuja, the left-arm spinner, and Ritesh Bhatkal all took two wickets apiece as Belagavi were pushed back. However, Sunil Kumar Jain, a muscular left-hand batsman, walked in at No. 6 and smashed an unbeaten 34-ball 39 to help Belagavi post 128. Chasing the target of 129, Hubli lost Anurag Bajpai and Abhishek Reddy in the first two overs, Stuart Binny and S. Arvind moving the ball cannily to effect both dismissals. It meant the dangerous Mayank Agarwal, usually an irresistible force, was forced to change strategy. He decided to pace the innings along with Siddharth, and the two kept the scoreboard moving. They had added a steady 31 for the third wicket when Belagavi, just refusing to let go, struck again. K. Gowtham showed just why he became one of the most expensive players in the tournament after deceiving Mayank with his off-spin.
